THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


[See  page  2ig 


'WHAT     1      CAN       DO.     THAT      I'LL      DO!" 


THE 

RAM  RODDERS 


A    NOVEL 


BY 

H  O  L MAN    DAY 

AUTHOR    OF 

"KING  SPRUCE"  ETC. 


NEW  YORK   AND    LONDON 

HARPER  6-  BROTHERS  PUBLISHERS 

M  C  M  X 


Copyright,  1910,  by  HARPER  &  BROTHERS 


Published  April,  1910 
Printed  in  tlx  United  States  oj  America 


CONTENTS 


CHAP.  PAGE 

I.  THE  BAITING  OF  THE  ANCIENT  LION  .     .  i 

II.  THB  LINE-UP  OF  THE  FIGHT 14 

III.  DENNIS  KAVANAGH'S  GIRL 27 

IV.  THE  DUKE  AT  BAY 35 

V.  A  CAUCUS,  AS  IT  WAS  PLANNED    .....  48 

VI.  A  CAUCUS,  AND  How  IT  WAS  RUN    ....  57 

VII.  WITH  THE  KAVANAGH  AT  HOME 69 

VIII.  THE  MANTLE  OF  THELISMER  THORNTON  ...  78 

IX.  IN  THE  CENTRE  OF  THE  BIG  STATE  WEB    .     .  94. 

X.  A  POLITICAL  CONVERT 108 

XI.  A  MAN  FROM  THE  SHADOWS  .......  zz6 

XII.  DEALS  AND  IDEALS    ..........  129 

XIII.  THE  DUKE'S  DOUBLE  CAMPAIGN     .....  138 

XIV.  THE  BEES  AND  THE  WOULD-BES 147 

XV.  SITTING  IN  FOR  THE  DEAL     .......  159 

XVI.  THE  HANDS  ARE  DEALT 171 

XVII.  THE  ODD  TRICK 188 

XVIII.  THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 209 

XIX.  THE  RAMRODDERS  RAMPANT 229 

XX.  A  GIRL'S  HEART 248 

XXL  STARTING  A  MULE  TEAM 258 

XXII.  FROM  THE  MOUTH  OF  A  MAID 273 

XXIII.  A  TRUCE 285 

XXIV.  A  GOVERNOR  AND  A  MAID 3°° 

XXV.  WOMEN,  AND  ONE  WOMAN 3X9 

XXVI.  THE  WAY  OF  A  MAID  WITH  A  MAID  ....  334 

XXVII.  THE  EVERLASTING  PROBLEM       34* 

XXVIII.  ONE  PROBLEM  SOLVED            .......  35° 


THE  RAMRODDERS 


THE    RAMRODDERS 


CHAPTER  I 

THE    BAITING    OF    THE    ANCIENT    LION 

AR  and  Peace  had  swapped  corners  that 
morning  in  the  village  of  Fort  Canibas. 
War  was  muttering  at  the  end  where  two 
meeting-houses  placidly  faced  each  other 
across  the  street.  Peace  brooded  over 
the  ancient  blockhouse,  relic  of  the 
"  Bloodless  War,"  and  upon  the  structure  that  Thelismer 
Thornton  had  converted  from  officers'  barracks  to  his 
own  uses  as  a  dwelling. 

At  dawn  a  telegraph  messenger  jangled  the  bell  in 
the  dim  hall  of  "The  Barracks."  It  was  an  urgent  cry 
from  the  chairman  of  the  Republican  State  Committee. 
It  announced  his  coming,  and  warned  the  autocrat  of 
the  North  Country  of  the  plot.  The  chairman  knew. 
The  plotters  had  been  betrayed  to  him,  and  from  his 
distance  he  enjoyed  a  perspective  which  is  helpful  in 
making  political  estimates.  But  Thelismer  Thornton 
only  chuckled  over  Luke  Presson's  fears.  He  went  back 
to  bed  for  another  nap. 

When  he  came  down  and  ate  breakfast  alone  in  the 
big  mess-room,  which  he  had  not  allowed  the  carpenters 
to  narrow  by  an  inch,  he  was  still  amused  by  the  chair- 

T 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

man's  panic.  As  a  politician  older  than  any  of  them, 
a  man  who  had  served  his  district  fifty  years  in  the 
legislature,  he  refused  to  believe — intrenched  there  in 
his  fortress  in  the  north — that  there  was  danger  abroad 
in  the  State. 

"  Reformers,  eh?"  He  sneered  the  word  aloud  in  the 
big  room  of  echoes.  "Well,  I  can  show  them  one  up 
here.  There's  Ivus  Niles!" 

And  at  that  moment  Ivus  Niles  was  marching  into 
the  village  from  the  Jo  Quacca  hills,  torch  for  the  tinder 
that  had  been  prepared.  It  is  said  that  a  cow  kicked 
over  a  lantern  that  started  the  conflagration  of  its 
generation.  In  times  when  political  tinder  is  dry  there 
have  been  great  men  who  have  underestimated  reform 
torches. 

It  was  a  bland  June  morning.  The  Hon.  Thelismer 
Thornton  was  bland,  too,  in  agreement  with  the  weather. 
A  good  politician  always  agrees  with  what  cannot  be 
helped. 

He  stood  in  the  door  of  "The  Barracks"  and  gazed 
out  upon  the  rolling  St.  John  hills — a  lofty,  ponderous 
hulk  of  a  man,  thatched  with  white  hair,  his  big,  round 
face  cherubic  still  in  spite  of  its  wrinkles.  He  lighted  a 
cigar,  and  gazed  up  into  the  cloudless  sky  with  the 
mental  endorsement  that  it  was  good  caucus  weather. 
Then  he  trudged  out  across  the  grass-plot  and  climbed 
into  his  favorite  seat.  It  was  an  arm-chair  set  high  in 
the  tangle  of  the  roots  of  an  overturned  spruce-tree. 
The  politicians  of  the  county  called  that  seat  "The 
Throne,"  and  for  a  quarter  of  a  century  the  Hon. 
Thelismer  Thornton  had  been  nicknamed  "  The  Duke  of 
Fort  Canibas."  Add  that  the  nicknames  were  not  illy 
bestowed.  Such  was  the  Hon.  Thelismer  Thornton. 

He  had  brought  newspapers  in  his  pockets.  He  set 
his  eye-glasses  on  his  bulging  nose,  and  began  to  read. 

In  the  highway  below  him  teams  went  jogging  into 


THE    ANCIENT    LION 

the  village.  There  were  fuzzy  Canadian  horses  pulling 
buckboards  sagging  under  the  weight  of  all  the  men 
who  could  cling  on.  There  were  top  carriages  and  even 
a  hayrack  well  loaded  with  men. 

Occasionally  the  old  man  lifted  his  gaze  from  his  read 
ing  and  eyed  the  dusty  wayfarers  benignantly.  He 
liked  to  know  that  the  boys  were  turning  out  to  the 
caucus.  His  perch  was  a  lofty  one.  He  could  see  that 
the  one  long  street  of  Fort  Canibas  was  well  gridironed 
with  teams — horses  munching  at  hitching-posts,  wagons 
thrusting  their  tails  into  the  roadway. 

It  was  quiet  at  Thornton's  end  of  the  village.  There 
was  merely  twitter  of  birds  in  the  silver  poplar  that 
shaded  his  seat,  busy  chatter  of  swallows,  who  were 
plastering  up  their  mud  nests  under  the  eaves  of  the 
old  blockhouse  across  the  road  from  him.  It  was  so 
quiet  that  he  could  hear  a  tumult  at  the  other  end  of  the 
village;  it  was  a  tumult  for  calm  Fort  Canibas.  A 
raucous  voice  bellowed  oratory  of  some  sort,  and  yells 
and  laughter  and  cheers  punctuated  the  speech.  Thorn 
ton  knew  the  voice,  even  at  that  distance,  for  the  voice 
of  "War  Eagle"  Niles.  He  grinned,  reading  his  paper. 
The  sound  of  that  voice  salted  the  article  that  he  was 
skimming : 

" — and  the  fight  is  beginning  early  this  year.  The  reform 
leaders  say  they  find  the  sentiment  of  the  people  to  be  with 
them,  and  so  the  reformers  propose  to  do  their  effective  work 
at  the  caucuses  instead  of  waiting  to  lock  horns  with  a  legisla 
ture  and  lobby  controlled  by  the  old  politicians  of  the  State. 
There  is  a  contest  on  even  in  that  impregnable  fortress  of  the 
old  regime,  the  '  Duchy  of  Canibas.'  It  is  said  that  the  whole 
strength  of  the  State  reform  movement  is  quietly  behind  the 
attempt  to  destroy  Thelismer  Thornton's  control  in  the  north 
country.  His  is  one  of  the  earliest  caucuses,  and  the  moral  ef 
fect  of  the  defeat  of  that  ancient  autocrat  will  be  incalculable." 

Still  more  broadly  did  Thornton  smile.     "  War  Eagle" 
Niles,  down  there,  was  a  reformer.     For  forty  years  he 
2  3 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

had  been  bellowing  against  despots  and  existing  order, 
and,  for  the  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas,  he  typified  "  Reform!" 
Visionary,  windy,  snarling,  impracticable  attempts  to 
smash  the  machine! 

Therefore,  in  his  serene  confidence — the  confidence  of 
an  old  man  who  has  founded  and  knows  the  solidity  of 
the  foundations — Thelismer  Thornton  smoked  peacefully 
at  one  end  of  the  village  of  Fort  Canibas,  and  allowed 
rebellion  to  roar  at  its  pleasure  in  the  other  end. 

Then  he  saw  them  coming,  heard  the  growing  murmur 
of  many  voices,  the  cackle  of  occasional  laughter,  and 
took  especial  note  of  "War  Eagle"  Ivus  Niles,  who  led 
the  parade.  A  fuzzy  and  ancient  silk  hat  topped  his 
head,  a  rusty  frock-coat  flapped  about  his  legs,  and  he 
tugged  along  at  the  end  of  a  cord  a  dirty  buck  sheep. 
A  big  crowd  followed;  but  when  they  shuffled  into  the 
yard  of  "The  Barracks"  most  of  the  men  were  grinning, 
as  though  they  had  come  merely  to  look  on  at  a  show. 
The  old  man  in  his  aureole  of  roots  gazed  at  them  with 
composure,  and  noted  no  hostility. 

Niles  and  his  buck  sheep  stood  forth  alone.  The 
others  were  grouped  in  a  half  circle.  Even  upon  the 
"  War  Eagle,"  Thornton  gazed  tolerantly.  There  was  the 
glint  of  fun  in  his  eyes  when  Niles  formally  removed  his 
silk  hat,  balanced  it,  crown  up,  in  the  hook  of  his  elbow, 
and  prepared  to  deliver  his  message. 

"  The  dynasty  of  the  house  of  Thornton  must  end  to 
day!"  boomed  Niles,  in  his  best  orotund. 

Thornton  found  eyes  in  the  crowd  that  blinked  ap 
preciation.  Quizzical  wrinkles  deepened  in  his  broad 
face.  He  plucked  a  cigar  from  his  waistcoat-pocket  and 
held  it  down  toward  Mr.  Niles. 

"No,  sir!"  roared  that  irreconcilable.  "I  ain't  hold 
ing  out  my  porringer  to  Power — never  again!" 

"Power,"  repulsed,  lighted  the  cigar  from  the  one  he 
was  smoking,  and  snapped  the  butt  at  the  sheep. 

4 


THE    ANCIENT    LION 

"  I'm  a  lover  of  good  oratory,  Ivus,"  he  said,  placidly, 
"and  I  know  you've  come  here  loaded.  Fire!"  He 
clasped  his  upcocked  knee  with  his  big  hands,  fingers 
interlaced,  and  leaned  back. 

The  crowd  exchanged  elbow-thrusts  and  winks.  But 
the  ripple  of  laughter  behind  did  not  take  the  edge  off 
Mr.  Niles's  earnestness. 

"  Honorable  Thornton,  I  do  not  mind  your  sneers  and 
slurs.  When  I  see  my  duty  I  go  for  it.  I'm  here  before 
you  to-day  as  Protest  walking  erect,  man-fashion,  on  two 
legs,  and  with  a  visible  emblem  that  talks  plainer  than 
words  can  talk.  The  people  need  visible  emblems  to 
remind  them.  Like  I'm  leading  this  sheep,  so  you  have 
been  leading  the  voters  of  this  legislative  district.  The 
ring  has  been  in  here" — Mr.  Niles  savagely  pinched  tne 
cartilage  of  his  nose — "  and  you  have  held  the  end  of  the 
cord.  That's  the  way  you've  been  led,  you  people!" 
The  orator  whirled  and  included  his  concourse  of  lis 
teners  as  objects  of  arraignment.  "  Here's  the  picture 
of  you  as  voters  right  before  your  eyes.  Do  you  propose 
to  be  sheep  any  longer?"  He  put  his  hat  on  his  head, 
and  shook  a  hairy  fist  at  the  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas. 
"This  ain't  a  dynasty,  and  you  can't  make  it  into  one. 
I  call  on  you  to  take  note  of  the  signs  and  act  accord 
ingly;  for  the  people  are  awake  and  arming  for  the 
fray.  And  when  the  people  are  once  awake  they  can't 
any  more  be  bamboozled  by  a  political  despot  than  the 
war  eagle,  screaming  across  the  blue  dome  of  the  ever 
lasting  heavens,  will  turn  tail  when  he  hears  the  twitter 
ing  of  a  pewee!"  Mr.  Niles  closed,  as  he  always  closed  a 
speech,  with  the  metaphor  that  had  given  him  his 
sobriquet. 

"That  is  real  oratory,  Ivus,"  stated  Mr.  Thornton, 
serenely;  "I  know  it  is,  because  a  man  who  is  listening 
to  real  oratory  never  understands  what  the  orator  is 
driving  at." 

5 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

The  Hon.  Thelismer  Thornton  usually  spoke  with  a 
slow,  dry,  half-quizzical  drawl.  That  drawl  was  effective 
now.  He  came  down  from  his  chair,  carefully  stepping 
on  the  roots,  and  loomed  above  Mr.  Niles,  amiable, 
tolerant,  serene.  His  wrinkled  crash  suit,  in  whose 
ample  folds  his  mighty  frame  bulked,  contrasted  oddly 
with  the  dusty,  rusty  black  in  which  Mr.  Niles  defied  the 
heat  of  the  summer  day. 

"  Now  I  am  down  where  I  can  talk  business,  Ivus. 
What's  the  matter  with  you?" 

"  Look  into  the  depths  of  your  own  soul,  if  you've 
got  the  moral  eyesight  to  look  through  mud,"  declaimed 
Mr.  Niles,  refusing  to  descend  from  polemics  to  plain 
business,  "  and  you'll  see  what  is  the  matter.  You  have 
made  yourself  the  voice  by  which  this  district  has  spoken 
in  the  halls  of  state  for  fifty  years,  and  that  voice  is  not 
the  voice  of  the  people!"  He  stood  on  tiptoe  and  roared 
the  charge. 

"  It  is  certainly  not  your  voice  that  I  take  down  to 
the  State  House  with  me,"  broke  in  their  representative. 
"  Freight  charges  on  it  would  more  than  eat  up  my 
mileage  allowance.  Now  let's  call  off  this  bass -drum 
solo  business.  Pull  down  your  kite.  To  business!" 
He  snapped  his  fingers  under  Mr.  Niles's  nose. 

One  of  those  in  the  throng  who  had  not  smiled  stepped 
forth  and  spoke  before  the  disconcerted  "War  Eagle" 
had  recovered  his  voice. 

"  Since  I  am  no  orator,  perhaps  I  can  talk  business  to 
you,  Representative  Thornton."  He  was  a  grave,  re 
pressed,  earnest  man,  whose  sunburned  face,  bowed 
shoulders,  work-stained  hands,  and  general  air  proclaim 
ed  the  farmer.  "  We've  come  here  on  a  matter  of  busi 
ness,  sir." 

"Led  by  a  buck  sheep  and  a  human  windmill,  eh?" 

"  Mr.  Niles's  notions  of  tactics  are  his  own.  I'm  sorry 
to  see  him  handle  this  thing  as  he  has.  It  was  coming 

6 


THE    ANCIENT    LION 

up  in  the  caucus  this  afternoon  in  the  right  way." 
Thornton  was  listening  with  interest,  and  the  man  went 
on  with  the  boldness  the  humble  often  display  after  long 
and  earnest  pondering  has  made  duty  plain.  "  When  I 
saw  Niles  pass  through  the  street  and  the  crowd  follow 
ing,  I  was  afraid  that  a  matter  that's  very  serious  to 
some  of  us  would  be  turned  into  horseplay,  and  so  I  came 
along,  too.  But  I  am  not  led  by  a  buck  sheep,  Mr. 
Thornton,  nor  are  those  who  believe  with  me." 

"Believe  what?" 

"That,  after  fifty  years  of  honors  at  our  hands,  you 
should  be  willing  to  step  aside." 

The  Hon.  Thelismer  Thornton  dragged  up  his  huge 
figure  into  the  stiffness  of  resentment.  He  ran  search 
ing  eyes  over  the  faces  before  him.  All  were  grave  now, 
for  the  sounding  of  the  first  note  of  revolt  in  a  half 
century  makes  for  gravity.  The  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas 
could  not  distinguish  adherents  from  foes  at  that 
moment,  when  all  faces  were  masked  with  deep  atten 
tion.  His  eyes  came  back  to  the  stubborn  spokesman. 

"Walt  Davis,"  he  said,  "your  grandfather  put  my 
name  before  the  caucus  that  nominated  me  for  the 
legislature  fifty  years  ago,  and  your  father  and  you  have 
voted  for  me  ever  since.  You  and  every  other  voter 
in  this  district  know  that  I  do  not  intend  to  run  again. 
I  have  announced  it.  What  do  you  mean,  then,  by 
coming  here  in  this  fashion?" 

"  You  have  given  out  that  you  are  going  to  make  your 
grandson  our  next  representative." 

"And  this  ain't  a  dynasty!"  roared  Mr.  Niles. 

"Is  there  anything  the  matter  with  my  grandson?" 
But  Davis  did  not  retreat  before  the  bent  brows  of  the 
district  god. 

"The  trouble  with  him  is,  that  he's  your  grandson." 

"And  what  fault  do  you  find  with  me  after  all  these 
years?"  There  was  wrathful  wonderment  in  the  tone. 

7 


"If  you're  going  to  retire  from  office,"  returned  Mr. 
Davis,  doggedly,  "  there's  no  need  of  raking  the  thing 
over  to  make  trouble  and  hard  feelings.  I've  voted 
for  you,  like  my  folks  did  before  me.  You're  welcome 
to  all  those  votes,  Representative  Thornton,  but  neither 
you  nor  your  grandson  is  going  to  get  any  more.  And 
as  I  say,  so  say  many  others  in  this  district." 

"No  crowned  heads,  no  rings  in  the  noses  of  the 
people,"  declared  Niles,  yanking  the  cord  and  producing 
a  bleat  of  fury  from  his  emblematic  captive. 

"I  don't  stand  for  Niles  and  his  monkey  business," 
protested  Davis.  "  I'm  on  a  different  platform.  All  is, 
we  propose  to  be  represented  from  now  on;  not  mis 
represented!" 

Something  like  stupefaction  succeeded  the  anger  in  the 
countenance  of  the  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas.  Again  he 
made  careful  scrutiny  of  the  faces  of  his  constituents. 
Then  he  turned  his  back  on  them  and  climbed  up  the 
twisted  roots  to  his  chair,  sat  down,  faced  them,  caught 
his  breath,  and  ejaculated,  "Well,  I'll  be  eternally 
d d!" 

He  studied  their  faces  for  some  time.  But  he  was 
too  good  a  politician  to  put  much  value  on  those  human 
documents  upraised  to  him.  There  were  grins,  subtle 
or  humorous.  There  were  a  few  scowls.  One  or  two, 
tittering  while  they  did  it,  urged  the  "War  Eagle"  on 
to  fresh  tirade.  It  was  a  mob  that  hardly  knew  its  own 
mind,  that  was  plain.  But  revolt  was  there.  He  felt 
it.  It  was  one  of  those  queer  rebellions,  starting  with 
a  joke  for  an  excuse,  but  ready  to  settle  into  something 
serious.  It  was  not  so  much  hostility  that  he  saw  at 
that  moment  as  something  more  dangerous — lack  of 
respect. 

"  Look  here,  boys,  I've  been  hearing  that  some  of 
those  cheap  suckers  from  down  State  have  been  sneak 
ing  around  this  district.  But  I've  never  insulted  you  by 


THE    ANCIENT    LION 

believing  you  took  any  stock  in  that  kind  of  cattle. 
We're  neighbors  here  together.  What's  the  matter 
with  me?  Out  with  your  real  grouch!" 

"Look  at  this  emblem  I've  brought,"  began  Niles, 
oracularly,  but  Thornton  was  no  longer  in  the  mood 
that  humored  cranks.  He  jumped  down,  yanked  the 
cord  away  from  Niles,  kicked  the  sheep  and  sent  it 
scampering  off  with  frightened  bleats. 

"  If  you  fellows  want  an  emblem,  there's  one,"  de 
clared  their  indignant  leader.  "  I'm  all  right  for  a 
joke — but  the  joke  has  got  to  stop  when  it  has  gone  far 
enough." 

He  had  sobered  them.  His  disgusted  glance  swept 
their  faces,  and  grins  were  gone.  He  went  among  them. 

"Get  around  me,  boys,"  he  invited.  "This  isn't  any 
stump  speech.  I'm  going  to  talk  business." 

They  did  crowd  around  him,  most  of  them,  but  Mr. 
Niles  was  still  intractable.  "You're  right,  it  was  your 
emblem  just  now!  It  has  always  been  a  kick  from  you 
and  the  rest  of  the  high  and  mighty  ones  when  you 
didn't  want  our  wool." 

"  You're  an  infernal  old  liar  and  meddler,  torched  on 
by  some  one  else!"  retorted  the  Duke.  "Now,  boys,  I 
see  into  this  thing  better  than  you  do.  Any  time  when 
I  haven't  used  my  district  right,  when  I've  betrayed  you, 
or  my  word  of  advice  isn't  worth  anything,  I'll  step  out — 
and  it  won't  need  any  bee  of  this  kind  to  come  around 
and  serve  notice  on  me.  But  I  understand  just  what 
this  shivaree  means.  Sneaks  have  come  in  here  and 
lied  behind  my  back  and  fooled  some  of  you.  Fools 
need  to  be  saved  from  themselves.  There  are  men  in 
this  State  who  would  peel  to  their  political  shirts  if  they 
could  lick  Thclismer  Thornton  in  his  own  district  just 
now  when  the  legislative  caucuses  are  beginning.  But 
I  won't  let  you  be  fooled  that  way!" 

"The  name  of  'Duke'  fits  you  all  right,"  piped  Niles 

9 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

from  a  safe  distance.     "This  is  a  dynasty  and  I've  said 
it  was,  and  now  you're  showing  the  cloven  foot!" 

Thornton  disdained  to  reply.  He  continued  to  walk 
about  among  them.  "They're  trying  to  work  you, 
boys,"  he  went  on.  "  I  heard  they  were  conniving  to 
do  business  in  this  district,  but  I  haven't  insulted  you  by 
paying  any  attention  to  rumors.  I  want  you  to  go  down 
to  that  caucus  this  afternoon  and  vote  for  Harlan. 
You  all  know  him.  I'm  an  old  man,  and  I  want  to  see 
him  started  right  before  I  get  done.  You  all  know  what 
the  Thorntons  have  done  for  you — and  what  they  can 
do.  I  don't  propose  to  see  you  swap  horses  while  you're 
crossing  the  river." 

But  they  did  not  rally  in  the  good  old  way.  There 
was  something  the  matter  with  them.  Those  who 
dared  to  meet  his  gaze  scowled.  Those  who  looked 
away  from  him  kept  their  eyes  averted  as  though  they 
were  afraid  to  show  their  new  faith.  They  had  dared 
to  march  up  to  him  behind  Niles  and  his  buck  sheep, 
masking  revolt  under  their  grins.  But  Thornton 
realized  that  whoever  had  infected  them  had  used  the 
poison  well.  They  had  come  to  laugh;  they  remained 
to  sulk.  And  they  who  had  baited  him  with  the  un 
speakable  Niles  understood  their  business  when  dealing 
with  such  an  old  lion  as  he. 

"You  need  a  guardian,  you  fellows,"  he  said,  con 
temptuously.  "  Your  mutton  marshal  just  fits  you. 
But  I'm  going  to  keep  you  from  buying  the  gold  brick 
in  politics  you're  reaching  for  now." 

"Wouldn't  it  be  a  good  idea,  Squire  Thornton,  to  let 
us  run  our  own  business  awhile?  You've  done  it  for 
fifty  years."  It  was  still  another  of  the  rebels  that  spoke. 

"  If  you  had  come  to  me  like  men,  instead  of  playing 
hoodlums  behind  a  lunatic  and  a  sheep,  I  would  have 
talked  to  you  as  men.  But  I  say  again  you  need  a 
guardian." 

10 


THE    ANCIENT    LION 

"  We  won't  vote  for  you  nor  none  you  name.  We've 
been  woke  up." 

The  old  man  threw  up  both  his  hands  and  cracked 
his  fingers  into  his  palms.  "And  you're  ready  to  take 
pap  and  paregoric  from  the  first  that  come  along,  you 
infants!" 

"You're  showing  yourself  now,  Duke  Thornton!" 
shouted  Niles.  "You've  used  us  like  you'd  use  school 
boys  for  fifty  years,  but  you  ain't  dared  to  brag  of  it 
till  now!" 

Thornton  strode  out  from  among  them.  He  tossed 
his  big  arms  as  though  ridding  himself  of  annoying  in 
sects.  He  had  been  stung  out  of  self-control.  It  was 
not  that  he  felt  contempt  for  his  people.  He  had 
always  felt  for  them  that  sense  of  protection  one  assumes 
who  has  taken  office  from  voters'  hands  for  many  years, 
has  begged  appropriations  from  the  State  treasury  for 
them,  has  taken  in  hand  their  public  affairs  and  ad 
ministered  them  without  bothering  to  ask  advice.  He 
realized  all  at  once  that  jealousy  and  ingratitude  must 
have  been  in  their  hearts  for  a  long  time.  Now  some 
influence  had  made  them  bold  enough  to  display  their 
feelings.  Thornton  had  seen  that  sort  of  revolt  many 
times  before  in  the  case  of  his  friends  in  the  public 
service.  He  had  always  felt  pride  in  the  belief  that  his 
own  people  were  different — that  his  hold  on  them  was 
that  of  the  patriarch  whom  they  loved  and  trusted. 

The  shock  of  it!  He  kept  his  face  from  them  as  he 
toiled  up  the  steps  of  the  old  house.  Tears  sparkled  in 
his  eyes,  sudden  tears  that  astonished  him.  For  a 
moment  he  felt  old  and  broken  and  childish,  and  was  not 
surprised  that  they  had  detected  the  weakness  of  a 
failing  old  man.  He  would  have  gone  into  "The 
Barracks"  without  showing  them  his  face,  but  on  the 
porch  he  was  forced  to  turn.  Some  one  had  arrived, 
and  arrived  tempestuously.  It  was  the  Hon.  Luke 

ii 


Presson,  Chairman  of  the  State  Committee.  He  stepped 
down  out  of  his  automobile  and  walked  around  the 
crowd,  spatting  his  gloved  hands  together,  and  looking 
them  over  critically.  So  he  came  to  Thelismer  Thorn 
ton,  waiting  on  the  steps,  and  shook  his  hand. 

Mr.  Presson  was  short  and  fat  and  rubicund,  and,  just 
now,  plainly  worried. 

"This  was  the  last  place  I  expected  to  have  to  jump 
into,  Thelismer,"  he  complained.  "  I  know  the  bunch 
has  been  wanting  to  get  at  you,  but  I  didn't  believe 
they'd  try.  I  see  that  you  and  your  boys  here  realize 
that  you're  up  against  a  fight!" 

He  shuttled  glances  from  face  to  face,  and  the  general 
gloom  impressed  him.  But  it  was  plain  that  he  did  not 
understand  that  he  was  facing  declared  rebels. 

"They've  slipped  five  thousand  dollars  in  here, 
Thelismer,"  he  went  on,  speaking  low.  "They'd  rather 
lug  off  this  caucus  than  any  fifty  districts  in  the  State." 

"  I  don't  believe  there's  men  here  that  '11  take  money 
to  vote  against  me,"  insisted  Thornton.  "But  they've 
been  lied  to — that  much  I'll  admit." 

"  You've  been  king  here  too  long,  Thelismer.  You 
take  too  much  for  granted.  They're  bunching  their  hits 
here,  I  tell  you.  There  are  fifty  thousand  straddlers  in 
this  State  ready  to  jump  into  the  camp  of  the  men  that 
can  lick  the  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas — it  gives  a  h — 1  of 
a  line  on  futures!  I  thought  you  had  your  eye  out 
better." 

The  deeper  guile  had  masked  itself  behind  such  charac 
ters  as  Ivus  Niles,  and  now  Thornton  realized  it,  and  real 
ized,  too,  to  what  a  pass  his  trustful  serenity,  builded 
on  the  loyalty  of  the  years,  had  brought  him. 

That  strained,  strange  look  of  grieved  surprise  went 
out  of  his  face.  He  lighted  a  cigar,  gazing  at  his  con 
stituents  over  his  scooped  hands  that  held  the  match. 

They  stared  at  him,  for  his  old  poise  had  returned. 

12 


THE    ANCIENT    LION 

"This  is  the  chairman  of  our  State  Committee,  boys," 
he  said,  "  come  up  to  look  over  the  field.  He  says 
there's  a  rumor  going  that  Thornton  can't  carry  his 
caucus  this  year."  The  Duke  dropped  into  his  quizzical 
drawl  now.  "  I  was  just  telling  my  friend  Luke  that  it's 
queer  how  rumors  get  started."  He  walked  to  the  porch- 
rail  and  leaned  over  it,  his  shaggy  head  dominating 
them.  And  then  he  threw  the  challenge  at  them. 
"The  caucus  is  going  to  be  held  in  the  other  end  of  the 
village — not  here  in  my  front  door-yard.  You'd  better 
get  over  there.  I  don't  need  any  such  clutter  here. 
Get  there  quick.  There  may  be  some  people  that  you'll 
want  to  warn.  Tell  'em  old  Thornton  hasn't  lost  his 
grip." 

He  took  Presson  by  the  arm,  and  swung  him  hospitably 
in  at  the  big  door  of  "The  Barracks." 


CHAPTER  II 


THE    LINE-UP    OF   THE    FIGHT 

HAT'S  too  rough  —  too  rough,  that  kind 
of  talk,  Thclismer,"  protested  the  State 
chairman. 

Thornton   swung   away  from  him  and 
went  to  the  window  of  the  living-room 
and  gazed  out  on  his  constituents. 
"  You  can't  handle  voters  the  way  you  used  to — you've 
got  to  hair-oil  'em  these  days." 

Presson  was  no  stranger  in  "The  Barracks."  But 
he  walked  around  the  big  living-room  with  the  fresh 
interest  he  always  felt  in  the  quaint  place.  Thornton 
stayed  at  the  window,  silent.  The  crowd  had  not  left 
the  yard — an  additional  insult  to  him.  They  were 
gathering  around  Niles  and  his  sheep,  and  Niles  was 
declaiming  again. 

The  broad  room  was  low,  its  time-stained  woods  were 
dark,  and  the  chairman  wandered  in  its  shadowy  re 
cesses  like  an  uneasy  ghost. 

"It  isn't  best  to  tongue-lash  the  boys  that  are  for 
you,"  advised  Presson,  fretfully,  "not  this  year,  when 
reformers  have  got  'em  filled  up  with  a  lot  of  skittish 
notions.  Humor  those  that  are  for  you." 

" For  me?"  snarled  "the  Duke,"  over  his  shoulder, 
and  then  he  turned  on  Presson.  "That  bunch  of  mangy 
pups  out  there  for  me?  Why,  Luke,  that's  opposition. 
And  it's  nasty,  sneering,  insulting  opposition.  I  ought 
to  go  out  there  and  blow  them  full  of  buckshot." 

14 


THE    LINE-UP   OF    THE    FIGHT 

He  shook  his  fists  at  the  gun-rack  beside  the  moose 
head  which  flung  its  wide  antlers  above  the  fireplace. 

"  Where's  the  crowd  that's  backing  you — your  own 
boys?" 

"  Luke,  I  swear  I  don't  know.  I  knew  there  was  some 
growling  in  this  district — there  always  is  in  a  district. 
A  man  like  Ivus  Niles  would  growl  about  John  the 
Baptist,  if  he  came  back  to  earth  and  went  in  for  politics. 
But  this  thing,  here,  gets  me!"  He  turned  to  the  win 
dow  once  more.  "There's  men  out  there  I  thought  I 
could  reckon  on  like  I'd  tie  to  my  own  grandson,  and 
they're  standing  with  their  mouths  open,  whooping  on 
that  old  blatherskite." 

Chairman  Presson  went  and  stood  with  him  at  the  win 
dow,  hands  in  trousers  pockets,  chinking  loose  silver 
and  staring  gloomily  through  the  dusty  panes. 

"  It's  hell  to  pave  this  State,  and  no  hot  pitch  ready," 
he  observed.  "I've  known  it  was  bad.  I  knew  they 
meant  you.  I  warned  you  they  were  going  to  get  in 
early  and  hit  hard  in  this  district — but  I  didn't  realize 
it  was  as  bad  as  this.  They're  calling  it  reform,  but  I  tell 
you,  Thelismer,  there's  big  money  and  big  men  sitting 
back  in  the  dark  and  rubbing  the  ears  of  these  pro 
hibition  pussies  and  tom-cats.  It's  a  State  overturn  that 
they're  playing  for!" 

He  began  to  stride  around  the  big  room.  In  two  of 
the  corners  stuffed  black  bears  reared  and  grinned  at 
each  other.  In  opposite  corners  loup-cerviers  stared  with 
unwinking  eyes  of  glass,  lips  drawn  over  their  teeth. 
"I'm  running  across  something  just  as  savage-looking 
in  every  political  corner  of  this  State,"  he  muttered, 
"  and  the  trouble  is  those  outside  of  here  are  pretty  blame 
much  alive." 

Niles  was  shouting  without,  and  men  were  cheering 
his  harangue. 

"There  used  to  be  some  sensible  politics  in  this  State," 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

went  on  the  disgusted  chairman.  "  But  it's  got  so  now 
that  a  State  committee  is  called  on  to  consult  a  lot 
of  cranks  before  drawing  up  the  convention  platform. 
Even  a  fellow  in  the  legislature  can't  do  what  he  wants  to 
for  the  boys;  cranks  howling  at  him  from  home  all  the 
time.  Candidates  pumped  for  ante-election  pledges,  pe 
titions  rammed  in  ahead  of  every  roll-call,  lobby  com 
mittees  from  the  farmers'  associations  tramping  around 
the  State  House  in  their  cowhide  boots,  and  a  good 
government  angel  peeking  in  at  every  committee-room 
keyhole!  Jeemsrollickins !  Jim  Elaine,  himself,  couldn't 
play  the  game  these  days." 

If  Thornton  listened,  he  gave  no  sign.  He  had  his 
elbows  on  the  window-sill  and  was  glowering  on  his 
constituents.  They  seemed  determined  to  keep  up  the 
hateful  serenade.  It  was  hard  for  the  old  man  to  under 
stand.  But  he  did  understand  human  nature — how  de 
pendence  breeds  resentment,  how  favors  bestowed  hatch 
sullen  ingratitude,  how  jealousy  turns  and  rends  as  soon 
as  Democracy  hisses,  "At  him!" 

There  was  a  dingy  wall  map  beside  him  between  the 
windows.  A  red  line  surrounded  a  section  of  it:  two 
towns,  a  dozen  plantations,  and  a  score  of  unorganized 
townships — a  thousand  square  miles  of  territory  that 
composed  his  political  barony.  And  on  that  section 
double  red  lines  marked  off  half  a  million  acres  of 
timber-land,  mountain,  plain,  and  lake  that  Thelismer 
Thornton  owned. 

Chairman  Presson,  walking  off  his  indignation,  came 
and  stood  in  front  of  the  map. 

"  Between  you  and  me,  Thelismer,  they've  got  quite 
a  lot  to  grumble  about,  the  farmers  have.  You  wild- 
land  fellows  have  grabbed  a  good  deal,  and  you  don't 
pay  much  taxes  on  it.  You  ought  to  have  loosened  a 
little  earlier." 

"  You  feel  the  cold  water  on  your  feet  and  you  lay  it 

16 


T  II  E    L  I  N  E  -  U  P    OF    THE    FIGHT 

to  me  rocking  the  boat,  hey?"  returned  the  Duke. 
"  This  is  no  time  to  begin  to  call  names,  Luke.  But  I 
want  to  tell  you  that  where  there's  one  man  in  this  State 
grumbling  about  wild-land  taxes^there  are  a  hundred 
up  and  howling  against  you  and  the  rest  of  the  gilt-edged 
hotel-keepers  that  are  selling  rum  and  running  bars 
just  as  though  there  wasn't  any  prohibitory  law  in 
our  constitution."  He  had  turned  from  the  window. 
"You're  looking  at  that  map,  eh?  You  think  I've 
stolen  land,  do  you?  Look  here!  I  came  down  that 
river  out  there  on  a  raft — just  married — my  wife  and  a 
few  poor  little  housekeeping  traps  on  it.  We  never  had 
a  comfort  till  we  got  to  the  age  where  most  folks  die. 
I've  had  to  live  to  be  eighty-five  to  get  a  little  something 
out  of  life.  And  she  worked  herself  to  death  in  spite  of 
all  I  could  say  to  stop  her.  Why,  when  the  bill  of  sale 
fell  due  on  the  first  pair  of  oxen  I  owned,  she  gave  me 
the  three  hundred  old-fashioned  cents  that  she — don't 
get  me  to  talking,  Presson!  But,  by  the  Jehovah,  I've 
earned  that  land  up  there!  Dollars  don't  pay  up  a  man 
and  a  woman  for  being  pioneers.  I'm  not  twitting  you 
nor  some  of  the  rest  of  the  men  in  this  State  in  regard 
to  how  you  got  your  money — but  you  know  how  you  did 
get  it!" 

"We've  stood  by  you  on  the  tax  question." 

"  And  I've  stood  by  you  against  the  prohibition  ram- 
rodders,  who  were  foolish  enough  to  think  that  rum- 
shops  ought  to  be  shut  up  because  the  law  said  so; 
and  I've  stood  with  the  corporations  and  I've  stood  with 
the  politicians,  and  played  the  game  according  to  the 
rules.  From  the  minute  you  came  into  my  dooryard 
to-day  you've  acted  as  though  you  thought  I'd  stirred 
this  whole  uproar  in  the  State." 

"  Did  you  ever  know  a  man  to  get  anywhere  in  politics 
if  he  didn't  play  the  game — honesty  or  no  honesty?" 

"Yes,  a  few — they  got  there,  but  they  didn't  stay 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

there  long,"  replied  the  Duke,  a  flicker  of  humor  in  his 
wistfulness. 

"  You  bet  they  didn't,"  agreed  the  chairman.  "  Thelis- 
mer,  I'm  just  as  honest  as  the  world  will  let  me  be  and 
succeed!  But  when  a  man  gets  to  be  perfectly  honest 
in  politics,  and  tries  to  lead  his  crowd  at  the  same  time, 
they  turn  around  and  swat  him.  I  reckon  he  makes 
human  nature  ashamed  of  itself,  and  folks  want  to  get 
him  out  of  sight." 

"  I  know,"  agreed  the  old  man,  and  he  looked  out  again 
on  Niles  and  his  audience.  "The  tough  part  of  it  is, 
Presson,  those  men  out  there  are  right  —  at  bottom. 
They're  playing  traitor  to  me  and  acting  like  infernal 
fools,  and  I  wouldn't  let  them  know  that  I  thought  them 
anything  else.  But  I'd  like  to  step  out  there,  Luke, 
and  say,  '  Boys,  you're  right.  I've  been  working  you. 
I've  done  you  a  lot  of  favors,  I've  brought  a  lot  of  bene 
fits  home  to  this  district,  but  I've  been  looking  after 
myself,  and  standing  in  with  the  bunch  that  has  got  the 
best  things  of  the  State  tied  up  in  a  small  bundle.  I've 
only  done  what  every  successful  politician  has  done — 
played  the  game.  But  you're  right.  Now  go  ahead  and 
clean  the  State.' ' 

"You  don't  mean  to  say  you'd  do  that?"  demanded 
Presson,  looking  his  old  friend  over  pityingly. 

"  Luke,  I  mean  that — but  I  don't  intend  to  do  it,  not 
by  a  blame  sight!  I  don't  believe  you  ever  realized  that 
I  was  really  honest  deep  down.  I  have  told  you  some 
thing  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart.  But"  —he  held 
out  his  big  hands  and  closed  and  unclosed  them — "if 
I  should  ever  let  them  loose  that  way  they'd  be  picked  up 
before  they'd  gone  forty  feet  by  some  other  fellow  that 
might  be  hollering  reform  and  not  be  half  as  honest  as  I 
am." 

He  shoved  his  hands  in  his  pockets  and  squinted 
shrewdly,  and  spoke  with  his  satiric  drawl. 

18 


THE    LINE-UP    OF    THE    FIGHT 

"There  was  old  Lem  Ferguson.  Lem  got  to  reading 
books  about  soul  transmigration  or  something  of  the 
kind,  and  turned  to  and  let  all  his  critters  loose.  Said 
that  one  living  being  didn't  have  any  right  to  enslave 
another  living  being.  Told  them  to  go  and  be  free.  And 
somebody  put  his  steers  in  the  pound,  and  vealed  two 
calves  and  sold  'em,  and  milked  his  cows,  and  stole  his 
sheep,  and  ripped  the  tags  out  of  their  ears  and  sheared 
'em  for  what  wool  they  had.  Luke,  I'm  no  relative  of 
Lem  Ferguson's  when  it  conies  to  practical  politics. 
I  know  just  as  well  as  you  do  who's  trying  to  steal  this 
State,  a  hunk  at  a  time.  They've  had  the  nerve  to  tackle 
my  district.  But  if  they  think  that  I'm  going  to  ungrip 
and  let  them  grab  it  they've  got  a  wrong  line  on  old 
Thornton's  sheepfold." 

"What  do  you  need  in  the  way  of  help?"  asked  the 
State  chairman. 

"  Nothing."  Thornton  turned  again  to  survey  his  un 
ruly  flock.  It  was  plain  that  they  were  baiting  their 
overlord.  Presson's  acumen  in  politics  enlightened  him. 
An  angry  man  may  be  made  to  antagonize  the  neutrals 
and  even  to  insult  his  friends — and  Thelismer  Thornton 
was  not  patient  when  provoked.  There  was  shrewd 
management  behind  this  revolt. 

Suddenly  the  yard  was  full  of  men,  new  arrivals.  It 
was  an  orderly  little  army,  woodsmen  with  meal-sack 
packs,  an  incoming  crew  on  its  march  to  the  woods.  A 
big  man  plodded  ahead  and  marshalled  them.  Thorn 
ton  hastened  out  upon  the  porch,  and  the  chairman 
followed.  The  big  man  halted  his  crew,  and  leaned  his 
elbows  on  the  porch  rail. 

"Thought  I'd  walk  'em  early  in  the  cool  of  the  day," 
he  explained,  "and  lay  off  here  for  dinner  and  a  rest. 
Pretty  good  lot  of  gash-fiddlers,  there,  Mr.  Thornton. 
I  picked  the  market  for  you." 

"And  I'll  sample  'em  right  now,"  said  the  Duke, 

19 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

grimly.  "  Ben,  tell  'em  to  drop  those  duffel-bags  and 
rush  that  gang  of  steers  out  of  my  yard."  He  pointed 
at  the  flock  of  constituents.  Niles  had  begun  fresh 
harangue  in  regard  to  despots,  addressing  the  new 
arrivals.  They  did  not  seem  to  be  especially  interested. 
There  were  a  few  long-legged  Prince  Edward  Islanders, 
but  most  of  them  v/ere  wiry  little  French  Canadians,  who 
did  not  seem  to  understand  much  of  the  orator's  tumult 
uous  speech. 

"  If  you've  got  a  crew  that's  any  good  on  a  log-landing, 
we'll  find  it  out,"  added  the  Duke.  "Get  at  'em!" 

"Good  gaddlemighty!"  gasped  Presson,  "you  ain't  go 
ing  to  do  anything  like  that!" 

"You  watch." 

"Politics?"  queried  the  big  boss,  swinging  about  to  go 
to  his  crew.  He  grinned.  It  was  evident  that  he  con 
sidered  that  anything  under  that  general  head  was  in 
the  Duke's  supreme  control,  and  that  his  employer's 
orders  absolved  him. 

"  It's  just  what  they've  been  trying  to  prod  into  you 
— it's  their  game,"  adjured  Presson,  beating  expostu 
lating  palms  upon  Thornton's  breast. 

"Then  it  has  worked,"  the  old  man  replied,  calmly. 
He  pushed  the  chairman  aside.  "Rush  'em,  Ben,  and, 
if  they  don't  go  easy,  toss  'em  over  the  fence." 

The  big  boss  sauntered  among  his  crew  and  growled 
a  few  crisp  commands.  The  smile  he  wore  gave  the 
affair  the  appearance  of  a  lark,  and  the  woodsmen  took 
it  in  that  spirit.  But  the  mob  was  sullen.  Those  who 
were  not  active  rebels  had  been  stung  by  the  contempt 
that  their  leader  now  displayed.  Some  resisted  when  the 
woodsmen  pushed  them  half  playfully.  A  burly  fellow 
stood  his  ground.  Ivus  Niles  lurked  at  his  back. 

"  The  folks  up  in  the  Jo  Quacca  Mountains  will  snicker 
in  good  shape  when  I  tell  'em  that  Fightin'  MacCracken 
let  himself  be  dumped  out  of  Duke  Thornton's  door- 

20 


THE    LINE-UP    OF    THE    FIGHT 

yard  by  a  pack  of  lard-eating  Quedaws,"  he  sneered  in 
the  giant's  ear. 

MacCracken  swept  away  the  first  three  men  with 
swinging  cuffs.  He  was  thinking  of  his  reputation  at 
home.  The  taunt  pricked  him. 

"  Call  'em  off — call  'em  off,  sir,"  pleaded  Davis.  "  I've 
been  trying  to  get  these  men  out  of  your  yard.  I  don't 
approve  of  Nilcs.  Let's  have  our  politics  clean,  Mr. 
Thornton.  I'm  willing  to  argue  with  you.  But  don't 
let's  have  it  said  outside  that  Fort  Canibas'  politics  is 
run  by  plug-uglies." 

"He's  right,  Thelismer;  you're  letting  them  score  a 
point  on  you,"  protested  Presson. 

But  Thornton  had  been  too  grievously  wounded  that 
day  to  be  able  to  listen  to  peace  measures.  He  strode 
down  off  the  porch,  shouting  commands.  His  men  were 
willing,  and  MacCracken's  defiance  gave  them  the  prov 
ocation  they  wanted. 

"  If  it's  fight  you're  looking  for,  you  spike-horn  stag," 
announced  the  boss,  bursting  through  the  press  to  reach 
the  Jo  Quacca  champion,  "  we  can  open  a  full  assortment, 
and  no  trouble  to  show  goods." 

He  knocked  MacCracken  flat,  reaching  over  the  heads 
of  the  smaller  men,  and  the  next  moment  the  Canadians 
swarmed  on  the  fallen  gladiator  like  flies,  lifted  him  and 
tossed  him  into  the  road.  The  rest  of  the  mob  escaped. 
Niles's  emblematic  buck  sheep,  cropping  the  grass  in  the 
fence  corner,  was  tossed  out  behind  the  fugitives. 

"  I  was  hoping  there'd  be  a  little  more  cayenne  in  it," 
complained  the  big  boss,  scrubbing  his  knuckles  against 
his  belted  jacket. 

"  Come  out  in  the  road  where  it  ain't  private  ground 
owned  by  the  old  land-grabber,"  pleaded  MacCracken. 
"  I'll  meet  you  somewhere,  Ben  Kyle,  where  it  '11  have  to 
be  a  fair  stand-up."  But  Kyle  gave  him  no  further 
attention. 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"Take  the  boys  into  the  ram  pasture,"  directed  his 
employer.  He  pointed  to  a  long,  low  addition  in  the 
rear  of  "The  Barracks,"  the  shelter  that  served  for  the 
housing  of  the  Thorntons'  crews,  migratory  to  or  from 
the  big  woods.  "I'll  bring  out  a  present.  I  guess 
you've  got  a  good,  able  crew  there,  Ben." 

Chairman  Presson  followed  the  old  man  back  into 
the  mansion.  He  was  angry,  and  made  his  sentiment 
known,  but  Thornton  was  stubborn. 

"There  may  be  another  way  of  running  this  district 
just  at  this  time,  Luke,  but  this  is  my  way  of  running  it, 
and  I'm  going  to  control  that  caucus.  So  what  are  you 
growling  about?"  He  was  opening  a  closet  in  the  wall. 

"  But  you're  starting  a  scandal — and  they'll  get  so 
stirred  up  that  they'll  put  an  independent  ticket  into 
the  field.  You'll  have  to  fight  'em  all  over  again  at  the 
polls.  You're  rasping  them  too  hard." 

"  Luke,  there  are  a  lot  of  things  you  know  about  down- 
country  politics,  and  perhaps  you  know  more  than  I  do 
about  politics  in  general.  But  there's  a  rule  in  seafaring 
that  holds  good  in  politics.  If  you're  trying  to  ratch  off 
a  lee  shore  it's  no  time  to  be  pulling  down  your  canvas." 

He  took  a  jug  out  of  the  closet,  and  went  to  the  low 
building.  The  chairman  followed  along,  not  comforted. 

The  woodsmen  had  piled  their  duffel-bags  in  corners 
and  were  waiting.  There  were  long  tables  up  and  down 
the  centre  of  the  room.  They  were  flanked  by  benches. 
The  tables  were  furnished  with  tin  plates,  tin  pannikins, 
knives,  and  two-tined  forks.  The  big  boss  had  already 
given  his  orders.  He  and  his  crew  had  been  expected. 
Men  were  hustling  food  onto  the  tables.  There  were 
great  pans  heaped  with  steaming  baked  beans,  dark  with 
molasses  sweetening,  gobbets  of  white  pork  flecking  the 
mounds.  Truncated  cones  of  brownbread  smoked  here 
and  there  on  platters.  Cubes  of  gingerbread  were  heaped 
high  in  wooden  bowls,  and  men  went  along  the  tables 

22 


THE    LINE-UP    OF    THE    FIGHT 

filling  the  pannikins  with  hot  tea.  The  kitchen  was  in 
a  leanto,  and  the  cook  was  pulling  tins  of  hot  biscuits 
from  the  oven.  There  was  not  a  woman  in  sight  about 
"The  Barracks."  There  had  been  none  for  years. 
Those  men  in  the  dirty  canvas  aprons  were  maids,  cooks, 
and  housekeepers. 

It  was  hospitality  rude  and  lavish.  That  low,  dark 
room  with  its  tiers  of  bunks  along  the  four  sides,  its  heaped 
tables,  its  air  of  uncalculated  plenty,  housed  the  re 
crudescence  of  feudalism  in  Yankee  surroundings.  And 
the  lord  of  the  manor  set  his  jug  at  one  end  of  the  table 
and  ordered  the  big  boss  to  pipe  all  hands  to  grog. 

"A  pretty  good  lot,  Ben,"  he  commented  as  they 
crowded  around.  "  And  this  here  is  something  in  the 
way  of  appreciation." 

"  Mr.  Harlan  coming  out  here  to  meet  me,  or  am  I 
going  in  and  hunt  him  up?"  inquired  Kyle.  "I  sup 
pose  he  has  located  most  of  the  operations  for  next 
season." 

"  You'll  take  them  in.  Harlan  won't  be  out  for  a 
while."  He  turned  and  walked  away,  the  chairman 
with  him. 

"  Your  grandson  seems  to  be  as  much  in  love  with  the 
woods  as  ever,"  commented  Presson.  "But  I  shouldn't 
think  you'd  want  him  to  associate  with  this  kind  of 
cattle  all  his  life,  herding  Canuck  goats  on  a  logging 
operation.  You've  got  money  enough,  the  two  of  you. 
He  ought  to  get  out  into  the  world,  find  an  up-to-date 
girl  for  a  wife,  and  get  married." 

Thornton  had  led  the  way  out  into  the  sunshine,  and 
was  strolling  about  the  yard,  hands  behind  his  back. 

"Luke,"  he  confided  after  a  few  moments,  "you've 
just  tapped  me  where  I'm  tender.  Look  here,  if  it  was 
just  me  and  me  only  that  this  hoorah  here  to-day  was 
hitting,  I'd  tell  'em  to  take  their  damnation  nomination 
and  make  it  a  cock-horse  for  any  reformer  that  wants  to 

23 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

ride.  I'd  do  it,  party  or  no  party!  But  the  minute  it 
leaked  out  that  I  was  putting  Harlan  up  for  the  caucus 
they  turned  on  me.  And  now  I  propose  to  show  'em." 

The  chairman  stopped  and  stared  at  his  friend.  That 
piece  of  news  had  not  reached  him  till  then. 

"You  don't  mean  to  tell  me,"  he  demanded,  "that 
you're  going  to  take  this  time  of  all  others  to  swap 
horses?  Why,  Harlan  Thornton  can't  play  politics! 
He  doesn't  know — " 

"  He  don't  need  to.  I'll  play  it  for  him.  Between 
you  and  me,  Luke,  he  doesn't  even  know  yet  that  he's 
going  to  run  for  the  legislature.  I'm  keeping  him  up  in 
the  woods  so  that  he  won't  know.  He's  one  of  those 
stiff-necked  young  colts  that  wants  to  do  only  what  he 
wants  to  do  in  a  good  many  things."  He  added  the 
last  with  a  growl  of  disgust.  "  And  he  won't  allow  that 
any  old  man  can  tell  him  a  few  things  that  he  doesn't 
know." 

"Now,  Thelismer,"  protested  the  chairman,  "I  don't 
know  anything  about  what's  going  on  in  your  family, 
here,  and  I  don't  care.  I  know  your  grandson  is  a 
straight  and  square  young  chap,  a  worker,  and  a  good 
business  man,  but  he's  no  politician.  I'm  not  going  to 
stand  for  his  butting  in  at  this  stage  of  the  game." 

"  He  isn't  butting  in.  I'm  throwing  him  in,  like  I'd 
train  a  puppy  to  swim,"  retorted  the  old  man,  calmly. 
"  And,  furthermore,  what  business  of  yours  is  it,  anyway  ?" 

"  I'm  chairman  of  the  State  committee." 

"And  I'm  the  boss  of  this  legislative  district.  Now, 
hold  on,  Luke."  He  bent  over  and  planted  his  two  big 
hands  on  the  chairman's  shoulders.  "Harlan  is  all  I've 
got.  He's  always  been  a  steady,  hustling  boy.  But  to 
get  him  out  of  these  woods  and  smoothed  up  like  I 
want  him  smoothed  up  has  been  worse  than  rooting  up 
old  Katahdin.  I've  been  pioneer  enough  for  both  of  us. 
I  don't  propose  to  have  him  spend  the  rest  of  his  life 

24 


THE    LINE-UP    OF    THE    FIGHT 

here.  First  off,  he  thought  it  was  his  duty  to  me  to 
take  the  business  burden  off  my  shoulders.  Now  he's 
got  into  the  life,  and  won't  stand  for  anything  else.  And 
the  only  thing  I  care  for  under  God's  heavens  at  my  age 
is  to  have  him  be  something  in  this  State.  He's  got  the 
looks  and  the  brains  and  the  money!  And  he's  going 
to  be  something!  And  I'm  going  to  see  him  started  on 
the  way.  God  knows  where  I'll  be  two  years  froo  now. 
You  can't  reckon  on  much  after  eighty.  To-day  I'm 
feeling  pretty  healthy."  There  was  a  bite  in  his  tone. 
"  And  I'm  going  to  nominate  Harlan  for  the  legislature, 
and  then  I'm  going  to  elect  him.  I'm  going  to  see  him 
started  right  before  I  die." 

"And  he  doesn't  want  to  go,  and  the  voters  don't  want 
him  to  go,"  lamented  Presson.  "You're  only  trying  to 
bull  through  a  political  slack-wire  exhibition  for  your 
own  amusement — and  this  whole  State  on  the  hair- 
trigger!  By  the  mighty,  it  isn't  right.  I  won't  stand 
for  it!" 

The  Duke  started  for  the  front  of  the  mansion. 

"And,  furthermore,  Thelismer,  if  you're  willing  to  run 
a  chance  of  tipping  over  the  politics  of  this  State  for  the 
sake  of  giving  your  grandson  a  course  of  sprouts,  you're 
losing  your  mind  in  your  old  age,  and  ought  to  be  taken 
care  of." 

Thornton  turned  and  bestowed  a  grim  smile  on  his 
angry  friend. 

"  Presson,  I've  stood  by  the  machine  a  good  many 
years.  Now,  if  I  can't  stand  for  a  little  business  of  my 
own  without  a  riot,  bring  on  your  riot.  I'll  lick  you  in 
that  caucus  with  one  hand  while  I'm  licking  that  dirty 
bunch  of  rebels  with  the  other.  I've  got  my  reasons  for 
what  I'm  doing." 

"  Give  me  a  good  reason,  then,"  begged  the  chairman. 
"  Killing  off  your  friends  for  the  sake  of  giving  Harlan 
Thornton  a  liberal  education  doesn't  appeal  to  me." 

25 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"My  real  reason  wouldn't,  either — not  just  now,"  re 
turned  the  Duke,  enigmatically. 

At  that  moment  half  a  dozen  gaunt  hounds  raced 
around  the  corner  of  "The  Barracks."  They  leaped  at 
Thornton  playfully,  daubing  his  crash  suit  with  their 
dusty  paws.  He  seemed  to  recognize  them.  He  cursed 
them  and  kicked  them  away  savagely. 


CHAPTER  III 
DENNIS  KAVANAGH'S  GIRL 

RANGY  roan  horse  followed  the  dogs, 
galloping  so  wildly  that  when  his  rider 
halted  him  his  hoofs  tore  up  the  turf  as 
he  slid.  A  girl  rode  him.  She  was 
mounted  astride,  and  Presson  had  to  look 
twice  at  her  to  make  sure  she  was  a  girl, 
for  she  wore  knickerbockers  and  gaiters,  and  her  copper- 
red  hair  curled  so  crisply  that  it  seemed  as  short  as  a 
boy's. 

"  Good-morning,  Mr.  Duke,"  she  called.  "  Is  Harlan 
down  from  the  woods  yet?" 

The  old  man  turned  to  march  off  after  a  scornful 
glance  at  her.  He  kicked  away  another  dog.  Then  he 
whirled  and  stepped  back  toward  her.  It  was  anger  and 
not  courtesy  that  impelled  him. 

"  He  isn't  here,  and  he  wron't  be  here.  And  how  many 
times  more  have  I  got  to  tell  you  not  to  be  impertinent 
to  me?" 

"  How,  Mr.  Duke?" 

"  By  that  infernal  nickname,"  he  stormed.  "  Young 
woman,  I've  told  you  to  stay  on  your  side  of  the  river, 
and  you — 

"Really  you  ought  to  be  called  'Duke'  if  you  order 
folks  off  the  earth  that  way,"  she  cried,  saucily.  "But 
I  did  not  come  to  see  you,  Mr.  Duke.  I  came  to  see 
Harlan.  Has  he  got  home  yet  ?" 

She   swung   sideways   on   her   horse   and   nursed   her 

27 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

slender  ankle  across  her  knee.  It  was  plain  that  she 
had  expected  this  reception,  and  knew  how  to  meet  it. 
She  gazed  at  him  serenely  from  big,  gray  eyes.  She 
smiled  and  held  her  head  a  little  to  one  side,  her  nose 
tiptilted  a  bit,  giving  her  an  aggravatingly  teasing  ex 
pression. 

"  I  tell  you  he's  not  here,  and  he  won't  be  here." 

"Oh  yes,  he  will.  For  "-  —  she  smiled  more  broadly, 
and  there  was  malice  in  her  eyes — "  I  sent  word  to  him 
to  come,  and  he's  coming." 

"  You  sent  word  to  him,  you  red-headed  Irish  cat  ? 
What  do  you  mean?" 

The  lord  of  Fort  Canibas  strode  close  to  her,  passion 
on  his  face.  Presson  could  see  that  this  was  no  sud 
denly  evoked  quarrel  between  the  two.  It  was  hostility 
reawakened. 

"  I  mean  that  I'm  looking  out  for  the  interests  of 
Harlan  when  those  at  home  are  plotting  against  him. 
I  hear  the  news.  I  listen  to  news  for  him,  when  he's 
away  in  the  big  woods.  And  I'm  not  going  to  let  you 
send  him  off  down  to  any  old  prison  of  a  legislature, 
where  he'll  be  spoiled  for  his  friends  up  here.  And  he 
doesn't  want  to  go.  And  he'll  be  here,  Mr.  Duke,  to 
see  that  you  don't  trade  him  off  into  your  politics." 

She  delivered  her  little  speech  resolutely,  and  gave 
him  back  his  blistering  gaze  without  winking. 

"Oh,  my  God,  if  you  were — were  only  Ivus  Niles,  or 
Beelzebub  himself  sitting  there  on  that  horse,"  Thornton 
gasped.  "  You — you — "  he  turned  away  from  her  mad 
dening  smile  and  stamped  about  on  the  turf.  The 
hounds  still  played  around  him,  persistent  in  their  atten 
tions.  He  kicked  at  them. 

"  It  suits  me  to  be  just  Clare  Kavanagh,  Mr.  Duke — 
and  I'm  not  afraid  of  you!" 

"Kyle  —  ho  there,  Kyle!"  The  big  boss  came  out 
of  the  "ram  pasture,"  wiping  food  fragments  from  his 

28 


DENNIS    KAVANAGH'S    GIRL 

beard.  "  Get  a  rifle  and  shoot  these  dogs.  Clean  'em 
out!  Take  two  men  and  ride  this  Irish  imp  across  the 
river  where  she  belongs." 

Kyle  balked.     His  face  showed  it. 

Presscn  had  never  seen  his  old  friend  in  such  a  fury. 
He  menaced  the  girl  with  his  fists  as  though  about  to 
forget  that  she  was  a  woman.  But  she  did  not  retreat. 
The  picture  was  that  of  the  kitten  and  the  mastiff.  Her 
sparkling  eyes  followed  him.  The  scarlet  of  an  anger 
as  ready  as  his  own  leaped  to  the  soft  curves  of  her  cheeks. 

"  You've  got  my  orders,  Kyle.     I  stand  behind  them." 

Without  taking  her  eyes  off  Thornton,  the  girl  reached 
behind  her  and  jerked  a  revolver  from  its  holster. 

"You  shoot  my  dogs,  Kyle,  and  I'll  shoot  you."  In 
her  tones  there  was  none  of  the  hysteria  that  usually 
spices  feminine  threats.  She  was  angry,  but  her  voice 
was  grimly  level.  She  had  the  poise  of  one  who  had 
learned  to  depend  on  her  own  resolute  spirit.  But  she 
displayed  something  more  than  that.  It  was  recklessness 
that  was  bravado.  In  the  eyes  of  the  State  chairman, 
friend  of  Thornton,  and  accustomed  to  a  milder  form 
of  femininity,  it  was  impudence.  Yet  her  beauty  made 
its  appeal  to  him.  The  old  man  lunged  toward  her,  but 
the  politician  seized  his  arm. 

"Thelismer,"  he  protested,  "you  are  going  too  far. 
I  don't  know  the  girl,  or  what  the  main  trouble  is,  but 
you're  acting  like  a  ten-year-old." 

Thelismer  Thornton  knew  it,  and  the  knowledge  added 
to  his  helpless  rage.  He  pulled  himself  out  of  Presson's 
grasp. 

He  began  to  revile  the  girl  in  language  that  made 
Presson  set  his  little  eyes  open  and  purse  his  round 
mouth. 

"Damn  it,  you  don't  understand,"  roared  the  Duke, 
whirling  on  his  friend.  Presson  had  faced  him  at  last 
with  protest  that  stung.  "  I  know  it's  no  kind  of  talk 

29 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

to  use  to  any  one.  I'm  no  ruffian.  I'm  ashamed  to 
have  to  use  it.  But  the  other  kind  don't  work — not 
with  her.  Land  -  pirate  Kavanagh  is  welcome  to  the 
ten  thousand  acres  of  timber-land  that  he  stole  from  me ; 
but  when  his  red-head  daughter  proposes  to  steal  my 
grandson,  and  laugh  at  me  to  my  face  while  she's  doing 
it,  she'll  take  what  I  have  to  give  her  if  she  wants  to  stay 
and  listen.  Look  at  her,  Presson!  Look  at  her!  Is 
that  the  kind  of  a  girl  for  any  young  chap  ?  A  rattle 
brained  imp  with  a  horse  between  her  knees  from 
daylight  to  dark,  riding  the  country  wild,  insulting 
old  age,  and  laughing  at  me  and  putting  the  devil  into 
the  head  of  my  grandson!  Kyle,  get  your  men  and  run 
her  across  the  river  into  her  Canuck  country!  She  isn't 
even  an  American  citizen,  Luke.  Do  you  hear  me,  Kyle  ?" 

Presson  saw  that  the  girl  was  not  looking  at  her  enemy 
then.  From  the  back  of  her  horse  she  could  see  farther 
up  the  road  than  they.  She  had  spied  a  horseman 
coming.  She  recognized  him.  She  uttered  a  shrill  call 
that  he  understood,  for  he  forced  his  horse  into  a  gallop, 
and  came  into  the  yard  before  Thornton  had  gathered 
himself  to  continue  his  tirade.  The  Duke  had  seen  his 
grandson  almost  as  soon  as  she,  and  the  passion  went 
out  of  his  face.  He  looked  suddenly  old  and  tired  and 
troubled. 

There  was  appeal  in  the  gaze  he  turned  on  his  grand 
son.  He  stepped  forward. 

"Don't  let  her  make  any  more  trouble  between  us, 
Harlan,  not  till  you  understand  how  she — 

But  the  girl  forestalled  him.  She  had  fought  her 
battle  alone  until  he  came.  She  slid  off  her  horse  and 
ran  across  the  yard,  sobbing  like  a  child.  And  now 
Presson  saw  how  young  she  was.  On  her  horse,  defiant 
almost  to  the  point  of  impudence,  she  had  a  manner  that 
belied  her  years.  But  when  she  fled  to  her  champion, 
she  was  revealed  as  only  a  little  girl  with  a  child's  im- 

3° 


DENNIS    KAVANAGH'S    GIRL 

pulsivcness  in  speech  and  action.  The  young  man 
slipped  his  foot  from  a  stirrup  and  held  his  hand  to  her. 
She  sprang  to  him,  standing  in  the  stirrup. 

"He  called  me  wicked  names,  Harlan!  I  was  only 
trying  to  help  you.  I  wanted  you  to  come,  for  I 
thought  you  ought  to  know!  You've  come.  I  knew 
you'd  come.  You  won't  let  him  send  you  away.  You'll 
not  let  him  call  me  those  names  ever  again!" 

He  gently  swung  her  down,  alighted  and  faced  his 
grandfather.  He  had  the  stalwart  frame  of  Thelismer 
Thornton,  and  with  it  the  poise  of  youth,  clean-limbed, 
bronzed,  and  erect.  He  flashed  a  pair  of  indignant 
brown  eyes  at  the  old  man.  The  Duke  recognized  the 
Thornton  challenge  to  battle  in  the  sparkle  of  those  eyes. 

"Let's  talk  this  over  by  ourselves,  Harlan,"  he  ad 
vised.  "  Send  the  girl  along  about  her  business.  She 
has  messed  things  between  us  badly  enough  as  it  is." 

"  Have  you  been  talking  to  this  poor  little  girl  as  she 
tells  me  you  have  talked?"  demanded  young  Thornton, 
narrowing  his  eyes. 

"That  isn't  the  tone  to  use  to  me,  boy,"  warned  the 
Duke.  There  had  been  appeal  in  his  face  and  his  voice 
at  the  beginning.  But  this  disloyalty  in  the  presence 
of  the  girl  pricked  him.  She  was  still  in  the  hook  of 
Harlan's  arm,  and  from  that  vantage-point  flung  a  glance 
of  childishly  ingenuous  triumph  at  him.  "  Not  that  tone 
from  grandson  to  grandfather." 

"  It's  man  to  man  just  now,  sir.  You  know  how  I 
feel  toward  this  little  friend  of  mine.  If  you  have  abused 
our  friendship  here  at  our  home,  you'll  apologize,  grand 
father  or  no  grandfather — and  that's  the  first  disrespect 
ful  word  I  ever  gave  you,  sir.  But  this  is  a  case  where 
I  have  the  right  to  speak." 

The  Duke  stiffened  and  his  face  was  gray. 

"  I  talked  to  her  the  way  Land-pirate  Kavanagh's 
daughter  ought  to  be  talked  to  when  she  comes  here 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

mocking  me.  Now,  Harlan,  if  you  want  this  in  the  open 
instead  of  in  private,  where  it  ought  to  be,  I'll  give  it  to 
you  straight  from  the  shoulder.  You're  not  going  to 
marry  that  girl.  She  sha'n't  steal  you  and  spoil  you. 
I've  told  you  so  before.  I  give  it  to  you  now  before 
witnesses." 

The  girl  ran  toward  him.  She  was  furious.  It  was 
evident  that  shame  as  well  as  anger  possessed  her. 

"  Have  I  ever  said  I  wanted  to  marry  your  grandson  ? 
Has  he  ever  said  he  wanted  to  marry  me  ?  Is  it  because 
you  have  such  a  wicked  old  mind  that  you  think  we 
cannot  always  be  the  true  friends  we  have  been  ?  I  do 
not  want  a  husband.  But  I  have  a  friend,  and  you  shall 
not  take  him  away  from  me!" 

"  You  have  heard,  sir.  Do  you  realize  how  you  have 
insulted  both  of  us?  You  shall  apologize,  Grandfather 
Thornton!" 

For  reply  the  old  man  walked  up  to  him,  snapped  the 
fingers  of  both  hands  under  his  nose,  and  walked  away. 
"Give  me  ten  words  more  of  that  talk  and  I'll  take  you 
across  my  knee,"  he  called  over  his  shoulder.  "There 
are  some  men  that  never  grow  old  enough  to  get  beyond 
the  spanking  age." 

Presson,  interested  spectator,  looked  for  the  natural 
outburst  of  youth  at  that  point.  But  he  stared  at  the 
young  man,  and  decided  that  he  truly  had  inherited  the 
Thornton  grit  and  self-restraint  which  the  Duke  seemed 
now  to  have  lost  all  at  once  after  all  the  years. 

Harlan  gazed  after  his  grandfather,  lips  tightening. 
He  was  an  embodiment  of  wholesome  young  manhood, 
as  he  stood  there,  struggling  with  the  passion  that 
prompted  him  to  unfilial  reproaches.  Then  he  turned  to 
the  girl.  He  had  a  wistful  smile  for  her. 

"I'm  sorry,  little  Clare,"  he  said,  softly.  She  slipped 
her  hands  under  the  belt  of  his  corduroy  jacket  and 
gazed  up  at  him  tearfully. 

32 


DENNIS    KAVANAGH'S    GIRL 

"  He  had  no  right  to  say  that  I — that  I — oh,  he  doesn't 
understand  friendship!"  she  cried. 

"No,  and  we'll  not  try  to  explain — not  now!  But 
I  have  some  serious  matters  to  talk  over  with  my  grand 
father.  Ride  home,  dear;  I'll  see  you  before  I  go  back  to 
the  woods  again." 

"  And  you  are  going  back  to  the  woods  ?  You  are  not 
going  to  let  them  send  you  away  where  you'll  forget  your 
best  friends?" 

"  I  never  shall  forget  my  friends.  And  I  can't  believe 
that  you  heard  right,  little  girl.  My  grandfather  will  not 
put  me  in  politics.  Don't  worry.  I'll  straighten  it  all 
out  before  I  leave." 

He  lifted  her  to  her  horse  and  sent  her  away  with  a 
pat.  She  went  unprotesting,  with  a  trustful  smile. 
The  hounds  raced  wildly  after  her. 

"Woof!"  remarked  the  Hon.  Luke  Presson  to  himself, 
"  there's  a  kitten  that's  been  fed  on  plenty  of  raw  meat!" 
And  as  he  always  compared  all  women  with  his  daughter, 
reigning  beauty  of  the  State  capital,  he  added:  "I'd 
like  to  have  Madeleine  get  a  glimpse  of  that.  She'd  be 
glad  that  it's  the  style  to  bring  girls  up  on  a  cream 
diet." 

He  hurried  away  behind  Harlan,  who  had  given  him 
rather  curt  greeting,  and  had  followed  the  Duke  around 
to  the  front  of  the  house.  The  old  man  was  tramping 
the  porch  from  end  to  end. 

The  boarding  creaked  under  him  as  he  strode,  his  gait 
a  lurch  that  moved  one  side  of  his  body  at  a  time.  The 
smoke  from  his  cigar  streamed  past  his  ears. 

It  was  silent  at  the  front  of  the  big  house,  and  in  that 
silence  the  three  of  them  could  hear  the  occasional 
shouts  that  greeted  demagogic  oratory  down  in  the 
village.  The  comment  of  the  lord  of  Canibas  was  the 
anathema  that  he  growled  to  himself. 

His  grandson  faced  him  twice  on  his  turns  along  the 

33 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

porch,  protest  in  his  demeanor.  But  the  old  man 
brushed  past. 

"Grandfather,  I  want  a  word  with  you,"  Harlan  vent 
ured  at  last. 

"  You  talk  girl  to  me  just  now,  young  fellow,  and  you 
won't  find  it  safe!" 

He  marched  on,  and  the  grandson  resolutely  waited  his 
return. 

"  I'm  going  to  talk  business,  sir.  I  want  this  thing 
understood.  Is  it  true  what  I  hear?  Do  you  propose 
to  put  my  name  before  that  caucus  ?  I  want  to  say — 

But  the  old  man  strode  away  from  him  again. 

"He  says  he's  going  to  do  it,  and  it's  fool  business," 
confided  Presson.  "  You've  got  to  stop  him.  There's 
no  reason  in  it." 

"  I've  got  my  reasons.  If  you  don't  know  enough  to 
see  'em,  it  isn't  my  fault,"  snapped  the  Duke,  passing 
them  and  overhearing. 

"  Then  I've  got  this  to  say."  The  young  man  stopped 
his  grandfather — as  big,  as  determined,  as  passionate — 
Thornton  against  Thornton.  "  I'll  not  go  to  the  legis 
lature." 

The  old  man  shouted  his  reply. 

"I  don't  know  as  you  will,  you  tote-road  mule,  you! 
But,  by  the  suffering  Herod,  they'll  have  to  show  me 
first!" 

He  elbowed  his  grandson  aside  and  kept  on  pacing  the 
porch. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE    DUKE    AT    BAY 

FTER  that  outburst  Prcsson  went  away 
by  himself  to  sulk.  Young  Thornton 
made  no  further  protest.  He  stared  at 
his  grandfather,  trying  to  comprehend 
what  it  meant — this  bitterness,  this  sav 
age  resentment,  this  arbitrary  authority 
that  took  no  heed  of  his  own  wishes.  He  had  always 
known  a  calm,  kindly,  sometimes  caustic,  but  never  im 
patient  Thelismer  Thornton.  This  old  man,  surly,  domi 
neering,  and  unreasonable,  was  new  to  him.  And  after 
a  little  while,  worried  and  saddened,  he  went  away.  His 
presence  seemed  to  stir  even  more  rancor  as  the  moments 
passed. 

Presson  understood  better,  but  could  not  forgive  the 
bullheadedness  that  seemed  to  be  wrecking  their  po 
litical  plans.  His  own  political  training  had  taught 
him  the  benefits  of  compromise.  He  was  angry  at  this 
old  man  who  proposed  to  go  down  fighting  among  the 
fallen  props  of  a  lifetime  of  power.  And  even  though 
Presson  now  understood  better  some  of  the  motives  that 
prompted  the  Duke  to  force  young  Harlan  out  into  the 
world,  his  political  sensibilities  were  more  acute  than 
his  sympathy. 

Therefore  the  beleaguered  lord  of  Canibas  was  left  to 
fight  it  out  alone. 

He  stood  at  the  end  of  the  porch  and  listened  to  the 
menacing  sounds  of  the  village. 
4  35 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

He  glared  down  the  long  street  and  grunted,  "  Grind 
ing  their  knives,  eh?" 

Evidently  the  centrifugal  motion  of  the  political  ma 
chine  down  there  was  violent  enough  to  throw  off 
one  lively  spark.  A  man  came  up  the  road  at  a  brisk 
gait,  stamped  across  the  yard,  and  went  direct  to  the 
Duke,  who  waited  for  him  at  the  far  end  of  the  porch. 
He  did  not  glance  at  Presson  or  at  Harlan  Thornton. 

"  Did  you  ever  see  anything  like  it,  did  you  ever  hear 
anything  like  it,  Honor'ble?"  the  new  arrival  demanded 
with  heat.  "They're  goin'  to  make  a  caucus  out  of  it — 
a  caucus!" 

The  man  had  a  lower  jaw  edged  with  a  roll  of  black 
whisker,  a  jaw  that  protruded  like  a  bulldog's.  With 
the  familiarity  of  the  long-time  lieutenant,  he  pecked 
with  thumb  and  forefinger  at  the  end  of  a  cigar  pro 
truding  from  his  chief's  waistcoat-pocket.  He  wrenched 
off  the  tip  between  snaggy  teeth.  He  spat  the  tip  far. 

"Yes,  sir,  by  jehoshaphat,  a  caucus!" 

Chairman  Presson's  ear  had  caught  the  sound  of 
politics.  He  felt  that  he  was  entitled,  ex  officio,  to  be 
present  at  any  conference.  He  hurried  to  the  end  of  the 
porch. 

"  We  ain't  had  a  caucus  in  this  district  for  more'n 
forty  years,"  stated  the  new  arrival,  accepting  the  chair 
man  as  a  friend  of  the  cause.  "  Except  as  the  chairman 
catches  the  seckertery  somewhere  and  then  hollers  for 
some  one  to  come  in  from  the  street  and  renominate  the 
Honor'ble  Thornton.  But,  dammit,  this  is  going  to  be 
a  caucus."  The  word  seemed  suddenly  to  have  acquired 
novel  meaning  for  him.  "  They  must  have  been  pussy- 
footin'  for  a  month.  You  could  have  knocked  me  down 
with  your  cigar-butt,  Squire,  when  I  got  in  here  to-day 
and  found  how  she  stood.  If  it  hadn't  been  for  War 
Eagle  Ivus  and  his  buck  sheep  breakin'  out,  they'd  have 
ambuscaded  ye,  surer'n  palm-leaf  fans  can't  cool  the 

36 


THE    DUKE    AT    BAY 

kitchen  o'  hell.  But  even  as  it  is — hoot  and  holler 
now,  and  tag-gool-I-see-ye,  they  say  they've  got  you 
licked,  and  licked  in  the  open — that's  what  they  say!" 
The  man's  tone  was  that  of  one  announcing  the  blotting- 
out  of  the  stars. 

"Walt  Davis  bragged  about  it,"  said  the  old  man, 
outwardly  calm,  but  eyes  ablaze.  "  It  must  be  a  pretty 
sure  thing  when  he's  got  the  courage  to  crawl  out  from 
under  the  wagon  and  yap." 

"  Good  God!"  blurted  the  chairman  of  the  State  Com 
mittee,  "you  don't  mean  to  tell  me!" 

"It's  the  ramrodders!  They've  been  up  here,  one  or 
two  of  the  old  cock  ones,  workin'  under  cover,"  stated 
the  unswerving  one.  "  About  once  in  so  often  the 
people  are  ripe  to  be  picked.  They've  mebbe  had 
drought,  chilblains,  lost  a  new  milch  cow,  and  had  a  note 
come  due — and  some  one  that's  paid  to  do  it  tells  'cm 
that  it's  all  due  to  the  political  ring — and  then  they 
begin  to  club  the  tree!  But  standing  here  spittin'  froth 
about  it  ain't  convertin'  the  heathern  nor  cooperin' 
them  that  imagine  vain  things.  Now  here's  what  I've 
done,  grabbin'  in  so's  to  lose  no  time.  I — 

"  No,  just  tell  me  what  the  other  side  has  done,"  com 
manded  the  Duke. 

"  First  place,  they've  got  names  in  black  and  white  of 
enough  Republicans  to  dowrn  you  in  caucus.  They've 
got  'em,  them  ramrodders  have!  I've  hairpinned  the 
truth  out  o'  the  cracks !  They've  been  sayin'  that  you've 
only  wanted  your  office  so  as  to  dicker  and  trade,  and 
make  yourself  and  them  in  your  political  bunch  richer; 
they're  showin'  figgcrs  to  prove  that  much;  sayin'  you 
brag  you  carry  our  district  in  your  vest-pocket;  sayin' 
everything  to  stir  up  the  bile  that's  in  every  man  when 
you  know  how  to  stir  for  it.  Furthermore,  Squire,  the 
fact  that  you're  gettin'  out  yourself  and  proposin'  to 
put  your  grandson  in  gives  'em  their  chance  to  say  a  lot. 

37 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Next  place,  this  is  goin'  to  be  a  caucus.  It  ain't  any 
imitation.  They're  goin'  to  use  a  marked  check-list." 

"What?"  roared  the  Honorable  Thelismer,  jarred  out 
of  his  baleful  calm. 

"  Yes,  sir !  They've  pulled  the  town  clerk  into  camp 
and  have  had  him  mark  a  list.  And  you  can  imagine 
who  they  picked  out  as  Republican  voters  in  this  town! 
And  they'll  stand  and  challenge  every  one  else  till  their 
throats  are  sore.  You  and  me  has  cut  up  a  few  little 
innocent  tricks  in  politics  in  our  time,  Squire,  but  we 
never  framed  anything  quite  as  tidy  as  this  for  a  steal. 
If  your  friend,  here,  is  in  politics,  he — 

"  I'm  Presson,  chairman  of  the  State  Committee," 
explained  that  gentleman.  The  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas 
was  too  much  absorbed  to  make  presentations. 

"Hell!  That  so?"  ripped  out  the  other,  frankly  as 
tonished.  "Well,  I'm  glad  you're  here.  You  ought  to 
be  able  to  help  us  out." 

Presson  was  not  cheerful  or  helpful.  "They're  slash 
ing  this  whole  State  open  from  one  end  to  the  other 
with  their  devilish  reform  hullabaloo,"  he  said. 

"  I  hear  there  is  quite  a  stir  outside,"  agreed  the 
agitator,  blandly.  He  looked  the  chairman  up  and 
down  with  interest.  "  You  may  call  me  Sylvester — 
Talleyrand  Sylvester.  Yankee  dickerer!  Buy  and  sell 
everything  from  a  clap  o'  thunder  to  a  second-hand 
gravestone.  It  brings  me  round  the  country  up  here, 
and  so  I've  been  the  Squire's  right-hand  man  in  the 
political  game,  such  as  there's  been  of  it."  He  turned 
his  back  on  the  pondering  Duke  and  continued,  sotto 
voce:  "I  reckon  if  he'd  stayed  in  himself,  Colonel,  they 
wouldn't  have  had  the  courage  to  tackle  him.  They 
might  have  hit  him  with  that  whole  stockin'ful  of  mud 
they've  been  collectin',  and  he  wouldn't  have  staggered. 
But  when  they  go  to  hit  the  young  feller,  there,  with  it, 
he's  down  and  out." 

38 


THE    DUKE    AT    BAY 

"Eh!"  barked  the  magnate  of  Canibas,  catching  the 
last  words.  "  I  am  ?  Not  by  a —  He  broke  off,  ashamed 
of  wasting  effort  in  mere  boasts.  "Presson,"  he  went 
on,  evidently  now  intent  on  proceeding  according  to  the 
plan  that  he  had  been  meditating,  "you've  got  your 
own  interest  in  seeing  me  keep  this  district  in  line, 
haven't  you?" 

"  You're  the  head  of  our  row  of  bricks,"  bleated  the 
chairman.  "We've  got  to  keep  you  standing — got  to 
do  it." 

"Then  we'll  get  busy."  The  old  man  threw  back  his 
shoulders.  "  Carrying  a  caucus  the  way  we've  probably 
got  to  carry  this  one  at  the  last  gasp  isn't  going  to  be  a 
genteel  entertainment."  He  tapped  a  stubby  finger  on 
the  honorable  chairman's  shirt-front.  "  I'm  going  to 
raise  some  very  particular  hell."  He  turned  to  his 
lieutenant.  "  The  boys  right  in  the  village,  here,  our 
own  bunch,  are  all  right,  of  course,  Sylvester?" 

"  Stickin'  to  you  like  pitch  in  a  spruce  crack,  as  usual. 
It's  the  outsiders  from  the  other  sections  in  the  district. 
They  hadn't  known  what  a  caucus  was  till  them  ramrod- 
ders  got  after  'em." 

"Can't  they  be  handled  now  that  they're  in  here?" 

"  Have  been  lied  to  already  too  skilful  and  thorough. 
Me  and  Whisperin'  Urban  and  a  few  others  of  the  boys 
blew  the  haydust  out  of  their  ears,  and  tried  to  inject  the 
usual — but  they  can't  hold  any  more.  They've  got  to 
be  unloaded  first — and  there  ain't  time  to  do  it." 

"And  you're  pretty  sure  they  can  swing  the  organiza 
tion  when  the  caucus  is  called?"  demanded  the  Duke. 

"Two  to  one — and  our  men  ain't  got  a  smell  on  that 
check-list  they've  doctored.  Why,  they've  even  got 
me  marked  'Socialist.'  You  can  imagine  what  they've 
done  to  the  rest  of  the  boys.  It's  one  o'clock  now." 
(He  had  looked  at  four  watches,  one  after  the  other,  a 
part  of  his  dickerer's  stock-in-trade.)  "  In  an  hour  and 

39 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

fifteen  minutes  they'll  be  organized  and  votin'  by  check 
list.  I  ain't  a  man  to  give  up  easy,  Squire,  but  I  swear 
it  looks  as  though  they  had  us  headed  so  far  on  the 
homestretch  that  we  ain't  near  enough  to  trip  'em  or 
bust  a  sulky  wheel  on  'em." 

"You've  got  more  than  an  hour's  leeway."  It  was 
a  soft  lisp  of  sound  that  startled  the  group.  The  man 
had  come  by  devious  ways  through  the  gullies  of  the 
Thornton  field,  around  the  corner  of  "The  Barracks,"  and 
upon  the  porch.  Those  who  knew  him  declared  that 
"  Whispering  Urban"  Cobb  never  walked  by  the  straight 
way  when  there  was  a  crooked  one  by  which  he  could 
dodge  around. 

"No,  they  can't  get  a-goin'  at  no  two  o'clock,"  he 
assured  them.  A  drooping  gray  mustache  curtained 
his  mouth,  drooping  gray  eyebrows  shaded  his  eyes, 
and  he  crowded  very  close  to  them  and  whispered, 
"  I've  stole  the  call  for  the  caucus,  and  they'll  hunt  for  it 
about  half  an  hour,  and  then  they'll  have  to  round  the 
committee  up  and  get  'em  to  sign  another,  and  have 
constables  swear  that  the  other  call  was  posted — and, 
well,  they  won't  get  going  much  before  four." 

The  Duke  looked  at  him  indulgently. 

"  I  took  it  on  myself  to  do  it.  I  reckoned  you  might 
need  the  extra  time,  seein'  that  they  was  tryin'  to  spring 
a  trap  on  you." 

He  took  the  cigar  that  the  Duke  offered  him  in  lieu 
of  praise. 

"  Bein'  sure  of  that  much  time — if  you'll  see  to  it  that 
they're  regular  about  the  call!"  Mr.  Cobb  cocked  in 
quiring  eye  at  the  old  man. 

"I'll  see  to  it,"  stated  Thornton,  grimly. 

"Well,  then,  bein'  sure  of  that  time,  I'll — Mr.  Thorn 
ton,  would  you  object  if  I  was  to  start  in  this  afternoon 
on  the  contract  of  clearing  up  that  slash  where  you 
operated  on  Jo  Quacca  last  winter?  Of  course,  this  ain't 

40 


THE    DUKE    AT    BAY 

just  the  best  kind  of  weather  for  bonfires,  but — the  fire 
will  certainly  burn!"  His  whispering  voice  gave  the 
suggestion  ominous  significance. 

The  Hon.  Thelismer  Thornton  stared  for  a  moment  at 
Cobb,  and  then  looked  up  at  the  heights  that  shimmered 
in  the  beating  sun. 

"You  may  start  in,  Cobb,"  he  said  at  last.  His  per 
ception  of  what  the  man  meant  came  instantly.  He  had 
hesitated  while  he  figured  chances.  "Take  fifty  of  those 
men  out  behind  there,"  his  thumb  jerked  over  his 
shoulder.  "  Give  every  man  a  shovel,  and  see  that  it 
doesn't  get  away  from  you.  More  smoke  than  fire, 
see!" 

Mr.  Cobb  hastened  away. 

The  duller  comprehension  of  the  chairman  of  the  State 
Committee  had  not  grasped  the  significance  of  the  con 
versation. 

"I'd  let  business  wait  till  politics  are  finished,. Thelis 
mer,"  he  chided. 

"  There  is  such  a  thing  as  running  the  two  on  a  double 
track,"  returned  Mr.  Thornton,  serene  but  non-com 
mittal.  He  whirled  on  Sylvester,  his  mien  that  of  the 
commander-in-chief  disposing  his  forces  in  the  face  of 
the  enemy:  "Talleyrand,  you'll  find  fifty  more  quedaws 
out  there  after  Cobb  takes  his  pick.  Take  them  down 
to  Aunt  Charette's  and  have  her  set  out  her  best.  And 
keep  'em  well  bunched  and  handy!" 

He  reached  through  an  open  window  and  filled  the 
pockets  of  his  crash  suit  with  cigars  from  a  box  on  a 
stand. 

"Now,  Luke,"  he  invited,  blandly,  "let's  go  to  a  legis 
lative  district  caucus.  I  haven't  bothered  to  attend  one 
for  a  good  many  years,  but  this  one  on  the  docket  now 
gives  signs  of  being  interesting." 

They  walked  down  the  dusty  road  toward  the  village. 
The  State  chairman  was  silent,  with  the  air  of  a  man 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

pondering  matters  he  does  not  understand;  but  the 
Hon.  Thelismer  Thornton  beamed  upon  all  he  met. 
Having  a  certainty  to  deal  with,  and  a  tangible  enemy 
in  sight,  he  seemed  at  ease.  He  felt  like  one  who  has 
recovered  from  dizzying  blows  and  is  on  trail  of  the 
enemy  who  dealt  them.  He  was  himself  again. 

A  few  of  those  he  met  he  greeted  with  especial  cord 
iality.  To  some  he  gave  cigars,  not  with  the  air  of  one 
seeking  favor,  not  with  the  cheap  generosity  of  the  pro 
fessional  politician,  but  with  the  manner  of  one  taking 
paternal  interest  in  the  conduct  of  a  good  child.  It  was 
an  act  that  seemed  to  go  with  his  hand-clasp  and  smile. 
He  caught  the  State  chairman  looking  at  him  rather 
doubtfully  on  one  of  these  occasions. 

"The  folks  understand  this  thing  up  here,"  he  said. 
"  When  those  chaps  were  young  ones  I  used  to  give  them 
a  stick  of  candy.  Now  that  they  are  grown  up  I  hand 
'em  a  cigar — got  into  the  habit  and  can't  stop.  Or  else 
I  send  'em  around  to  Aunt  Charette's  and  have  it  put 
on  my  account.  Wicked  performance,  I  suppose,  and 
so  the  old  ladies  tell  me.  But  I  was  born  in  the  old 
rum-and-molasses  times,  Luke,  when  the  liquor  thing 
sort  of  run  itself,  and  didn't  give  so  many  cheap  snoozers 
a  job  on  one  side  or  the  other." 

"What's  this  Aunt  Charette's  you're  talking  about?" 
asked  the  chairman. 

"An  institution!"  The  Duke  enjoyed  the  puzzled 
stare  the  little  man  rolled  up  at  him.  "  I  reckon  you 
think  you've  solved  the  liquor  question  in  this  prohibi 
tion  State  at  that  hotel  bar  of  yours,  Luke.  I've  solved 
it  in  my  own  way  up  here.  Aunt  Charette's  is  an  insti 
tution  that  I've  founded.  Come  and  look  at  it." 

He  led  the  way  off  the  main  street.  There  was  a 
cottage  at  the  end  of  a  lane,  tree-embowered,  neat  with 
fresh  white  paint  and  blinds  of  vivid  green.  An  old 
man  sat  in  an  arm-chair  under  one  of  the  trees.  He 

42 


THE    DUKE    AT    BAY 

wore  gold  earrings  and  an  old-style  coat  with  brass 
buttons. 

"  Uncle  Charette,"  explained  the  Duke,  as  they  passed 
him.  "Simply  a  lawn  ornament." 

He  led  the  way  into  the  house  without  knocking. 

"  And  this  is  Aunt  Charette,"  he  volunteered.  In  the 
centre  of  the  spotless  fore-room  a  ponderous  woman 
rocked  in  her  huge  chair  and  knitted  placidly.  She 
was  a  picture  of  peaceful  prosperity  in  black  silk  gown 
and  gold-bowed  spectacles. 

"And  here's  the  nature  of  Aunt  Charette's  institu 
tion."  He  pointed  to  an  open  cupboard  in  which  there 
were  many  bottles. 

"  Oh !  your  local  liquor  agency,"  hazarded  the  chairman. 

"No,  sir!  Aunt  Charette's  own  dispensary  for  the 
ills  of  the  mind  and  fatigues  of  the  body,  and  run  ac 
cording  to  my  own  notions.  It  beats  your  bar  and  white 
jackets,  Luke,  or  that  solemn  farce  of  cheap  liquors  and 
robber  prices  of  the  State  agency  system.  You  come  in 
here,  if  you  are  not  a  drunkard  or  a  minor  or  a  pauper 
— and  Aunt  Charette  knows  'em  all — -and  you  go  to  the 
cupboard  and  get  your  drink,  or  you  go  out  there  in  the 
store-room  and  get  your  bottle,  and  hand  the  change  to 
Aunt  Charette  and  walk  away.  No  other  rum-shop 
tolerated  in  the  section,  and  pocket  peddlers  run  out  of 
town  on  a  rail!  No  treating,  no  foolishness,  no  fraud. 
Pays  her  fine  twice  a  year  without  going  to  court,  the 
same  as  you.  And  no  extras!"  He  smiled  at  the 
chairman  significantly. 

"  No  extras,  eh !"  mused  Mr.  Presson,  enviously.  "  You 
must  have  a  different  crowd  of  county  officers  than 
we've  got  down  our  way." 

"Perhaps  so,"  admitted  the  old  man,  and  then  he 
allowed  himself  a  bit  of  a  boast;  "but  the  secret  is,  you 
see,  this  little  institution  is  something  I've  taken  under 
my  own  wing." 

43 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

It  was  an  ill-starred  moment  for  that  honest  boast. 
There  came  a  thumping  of  feet  in  the  hall.  The  man 
who  burst  in  was  flushed  and  sweating  and  excited. 

"I'm  glad  you're  here,  Squire,"  he  panted.  "You're 
just  in  the  nick  o'  time.  They're  going  to  jump  on  the 
old  lady." 

"Who's  going  to  jump?" 

"  High  Sheriff  Niles  and  his  posse.  They  ain't  more'n 
ten  rods  behind,  jigger  wagon  and  all." 

The  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas  stared  a  moment  at  the 
herald.  Aunt  Charette  raised  her  eyes  to  her  protector 
with  the  air  of  one  secure  under  the  wings  of  a  patron 
saint,  and  went  on  knitting. 

"Gad!"  hissed  the  State  chairman.  "They  certainly 
do  mean  you  this  time,  Thelismer!  Discrediting  your 
pull  in  county  politics  an  hour  before  your  caucus! 
Some  one  is  showing  brains!" 

Thornton  did  not  answer. 

"How  in  blazes  have  they  pulled  over  the  sheriff?" 
demanded  Presson.  But  the  old  man  merely  stared  at 
the  door. 

High  Sheriff  Niles  entered  at  that  moment.  He  stood 
on  the  threshold  and  scowled.  He  was  a  stocky  man, 
who  had  been  a  butcher.  His  face  was  blotched  by 
ruddiness  resembling  that  of  raw  meat.  Behind  his 
cockaded  silk  hat  pressed  the  faces  of  his  aids.  The 
little  yard  was  filled  with  men  who  peered  in  at  the 
windows.  A  big  truck  wagon  was  creaking  as  its  horses 
backed  it  to  the  door. 

"  What  are  you  after  here,  Niles  ?"  demanded  Thornton. 

"  After  this  stock  of  rum." 

The  Duke  took  another  swing  across  the  room,  licked 
his  lips,  and  set  his  extinguished  cigar  hard  between  his 
teeth.  He  was  striving  to  control  the  wrath  that  came 
boiling  up  into  his  purple  face  and  blazing  eyes. 

"There's  the  warrant!"  The  sheriff  clapped  the 

44 


THE    DUKE    AT    BAY 

paper  across  his  palm.  "Take  the  stuff,  boys!"  He 
waved  his  hand  at  the  cupboard. 

"But  the  most  of  it's  in  the  cellar,"  shrilled  the  voice 
of  a  tattler  in  the  hallway.  "There's  where  she  keeps 
it!" 

"I  don't  need  any  advice,"  growled  the  sheriff. 
His  men  trudged  into  the  room  and  made  for  the  cup 
board. 

Now  at  last  Aunt  Charettc  understood  that  her  stores 
were  threatened.  She  did  not  leave  her  chair.  She 
fumbled  frantically  at  her  big  bag  that  hung  at  her 
waist. 

"  Non,  non!"  she  cried.  "  Yo'  may  not  to'ch!  I  have 
pay!  I  have  pay  for  nex'  sax  month." 

She  flapped  a  paper  at  the  sheriff.  He  took  it  per 
functorily.  "That's  all  right,  old  woman,  but  it  hasn't 
got  anything  to  do  with  my  business  here.  I'm  after 
your  stuff  on  a  warrant."  He  gave  back  the  paper  and 
started  for  the  stairs  leading  to  the  cellar. 

"But  I  have  pay,"  she  vociferated.  "You  tell  them 
I  have  pay,  M'sieu'  Thornton!  You'  told  me  if  I  have 
pay  twice  in  ye'r  I  have  de  privilege — de  privilege!" 

The  sheriff  turned  and  grinned  over  his  shoulder  into 
the  convulsed  face  of  the  Honorable  Thelismer. 

"  There's  a  lot  of  bargains  in  politics,  marm,"  he  stated, 
dryly,  "  that  takes  more'n  two  to  put  'em  through  when 
the  pinch  comes."  He  enjoyed  the  discomfiture  that 
her  artless  confession  brought  to  the  Duke.  The  old 
man  looked  him  up  and  down.  That  this  Niles  whom  he 
himself  had  helped  into  office,  who  had  been  taking 
private  toll  from  the  liquor  interests  of  the  county  as 
his  predecessors  had  before  him,  a  procedure  condoned  by 
the  party  leaders  of  whom  the  Honorable  Thelismer  was 
one — that  this  person  should  whirl  on  him  in  such  fashion 
was  a  performance  that  Thornton  could  not  yet  fully 
understand.  But  there  was  the  fact  to  contend  with. 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

A  man  he  had  helped  to  elevate  was  engaged  in  humili 
ating  him  in  the  frankly  wondering  gaze  of  his  own 
community. 

Those  who  peeped  in  at  doors  and  windows  were  not, 
all  of  them,  enemies.  There  were  friends  who  sym 
pathized  and  were  astonished.  Their  murmurings  told 
that. 

"You  infernal  Hereford  bull!"  roared  Thornton; 
"don't  you  dare  to  slur  me  before  my  people.  You're 
making  this  raid  because  I  haven't  buttered  you  with 
ten-dollar  bills  to  keep  your  hands  off.  You've  taken 
'em  from  all  the  other  rum-sellers — but  this  isn't  one  of 
your  regular  rum-shops." 

"That's  right,  Squire.  Give  it  to  him,"  muttered 
men  at  door  and  windows. 

"  We  all  know  how  the  sheriff's  office  is  run  in  this 
county."  This  statement  was  made  by  Talleyrand  Syl 
vester,  who  came  thrusting  through  the  jam  of  the  hall 
into  the  fore-room.  "Squire,"  he  whispered,  hoarsely, 
"  I've  brought  down  them  quedaws  as  you  told  me  to. 
They're  outside.  Say  the  word  and  we'll  light  on  that 
old  steer  in  the  plug-hat!" 

For  an  instant  there  was  a  glint  in  the  old  man's  eyes 
which  hinted  that  the  word  would  be  given.  But  the 
impulse  was  merely  the  first  reckless  one  of  retaliation. 
Assault  on  law,  even  as  represented  by  such  an  un 
worthy  executive  as  he  knew  Niles  to  be,  would  make 
too  wicked  a  story  for  slander  to  handle.  Slander 
would  be  busy  enough  as  it  was. 

He  pushed  the  eager  Sylvester  to  one  side. 

"  Let  me  see  your  warrant,  Niles,"  he  requested.  The 
officer  passed  it  over,  with  a  touch  of  sudden  humility 
in  his  demeanor.  "  I'm  only  doing  my  duty  as  it's  laid 
out  by  the  statutes,"  he  muttered.  He  quailed  under 
the  old  man's  eyes.  He  did  not  like  the  sound  of  the 
mumbling  at  the  windows  nor  relish  the  looks  of  the  men 

46 


THE    DUKE    AT    BAY 

who  had  just  come  flocking  into  the  yard  at  the  heels  of 
Sylvester. 

"  'Twas  sworn  out  and  passed  to  me,"  stated  the 
sheriff. 

"  Sworn  out  on  complaint  of  Tom  Willy."  He  looked 
above  the  document  and  saw  in  the  doorway  the  man 
who  had  cried  information  regarding  the  liquor  in  the 
cellar.  "Tom  Willy,  the  cheapest  drunkard  we've  got 
in  the  town,  taking  sneaking  revenge  because  he  has 
been  shut  off  from  privileges  here  that  decent  men 
haven't  abused!  But  I  tell  you,  gentlemen,  even  Tom 
Willy  isn't  as  cheap  as  the  men  who  have  sneaked  be 
hind  him  and  prodded  him  on  to  do  this.  There's  some 
one  behind  him,  for  Tom  Willy  hasn't  got  brains  enough 
nor  sprawl  enough  to  do  this  all  by  himself." 

He  gave  the  warrant  back  to  the  sheriff.  He  had  re 
covered  his  self-possession.  He  was  again  their  Duke 
of  Fort  Canibas,  who  could  retire  with  dignity  even 
from  such  a  position  as  this.  "  Go  ahead  and  train  with 
your  crowd,  Sheriff  Niles,"  he  drawled,  sarcastically — 
"  Tom  Willy,  and  whoever  they  are  behind  him  that  are 
too  ashamed  to  show  themselves!" 

He  started  for  the  door,  Luke  Presson  at  his  heels. 
Aunt  Charette,  not  exactly  understanding,  realized  that 
the  protecting  a^gis  was  departing. 

"  But  I  have  pay!"  she  wailed.  "  You  have  de  power, 
M'sieu'  Thornton!  They  take  my  properties!" 

He  patted  the  shiny  silk  of  the  old  woman's  shoulder 
as  he  passed  her. 

"  Keep  your  sitting,  Aunt  Charette,"  he  advised,  "  and 
let  them  take  it.  It  will  be  a  good  investment  for  you 
—leave  it  to  me." 

He  lighted  a  fresh  cigar  out-of-doors. 

"Luke,"  he  declared  quietly  between  puffs,  "this  is 
developing  into  quite  a  caucus  day — take  all  trimmings. 
I'm  glad  you  are  here  to  look  on!" 

47 


CHAPTER  V 


A    CAUCUS,    AS    IT    WAS    PLANNED 

HE  town  house  of  Fort  Canibas  needed 
no  guide-board  that  day.  All  roads  led 
to  it.  Thelismer  Thornton  wralked  down 
the  main  street,  his  following  at  his  heels. 
His  hands  were  behind  his  back,  and  he 
sauntered  along  like  one  who  was  at  peace 
with  the  world.  His  face  was  serene  once  more.  He 
seemed  to  have  recovered  all  the  genial  good-nature  that 
men  associated  with  Thelismer  Thornton.  The  chair 
man  trotted  on  short  legs  at  his  side,  looking  up  at  him 
sourly.  Thornton  smiled  down  at  him. 

"  Finding  your  old  State  campaign  sicker  than  you 
thought  for,  hey,  Luke?" 

He  was  now  as  Presson  had  always  know^n  him,  but 
the  little  man  did  not  seem  to  be  consoled  thereby. 

"I'd  like  to  know  what's  come  over  you  to-day?"  he 
complained.  "  Giving  a  helpless  little  girl  hell-an'-repeat, 
and  then  standing  for  what  you  did  back  there  right  now !" 
"  Luke,  both  of  us  have  seen  a  great  many  men  lose 
their  dignity  fighting  hornets.  But  I've  come  to  myself, 
and  I've  stopped  running  and  swatting.  Well,  Briggs, 
what  is  it?" 

The  man  who  had  brought  the  alarm  to  Aunt  Charette's 
was  crowding  close,  plainly  with  something  to  say. 

"  I  only  wanted  to  tell  you,  Squire,  that  Sheriff  Niles 
brought  in  word  to  the  boys  that  high-uppers  was  back 
of  him." 

48 


A  CAUCUS,  AS  IT  WAS  PLANNED 

"  Thinks  he's  running  with  the  pack,  eh  ?  Well, 
Briggs,  that's  hardly  news  about  Bart  Niles." 

"Thought  I'd  warn  you,  Squire.  He  says  things 
ain't  goin'  on  runnin'  in  this  State  the  way  they  have 
been  runnin'.  Way  he  talks,  him  and  them  back  of  him 
think  they've  got  you  layin'  with  all  four  paws  in  the  air. 
But  we  in  the  village  here,  that's  behind  you,  don't  under 
stand  it  that  way.  Nor  we  can't  figger  what  started  it." 

"  Don't  bother  your  heads  about  it  to-day,  Briggs. 
Simply  stand  by  and  be  ready  to  grab  in,  you  and  the 
boys.  That's  all." 

The  post-office  was  in  the  lower  story  of  the  town 
house.  The  walls  were  brick  to  the  second  story.  This 
upper  part  was  a  barn-like  structure  propped  on  the 
lower  walls.  Broad  outside  stairs  led  up  to  it. 

Thornton  and  Prcsson  were  obliged  to  push  their  way 
through  a  crowd  to  reach  the  foot  of  the  stairway.  They 
were  stopped  there  by  an  obstruction.  Some  men  were 
lifting  off  a  low  wagon  a  cripple  in  a  wheel-chair.  He 
had  an  in-door  pallor  that  made  him  seem  corpselike. 
A  man  in  a  frock-coat  and  with  a  ministerial  wrhite  tie 
was  bossing  the  job. 

The  Duke  stopped  and  gazed  on  the  work  amiably. 
The  man  of  the  white  tie  scowled. 

"  Raising  a  fewr  reliable  Republicans  from  the  dead, 
are  you,  elder?"  inquired  the  Duke,  pleasantly. 

The  elder  did  not  reply  until  he  had  started  the 
cripple's  chair  bumping  up  the  stairs.  Then  he  turned 
on  Thornton.  He  was  not  amiable. 

"  It's  time  some  of  the  voters  with  honest  convictions 
got  a  chance  to  attend  a  caucus  in  this  district,  even  if 
they  have  to  be  brought  from  beds  of  pain." 

Thelismer  Thornton  did  not  lose  his  smile. 

"  I'd  like  to  have  you  meet  the  Rev.  Enoch  Dudley, 
evangelist,  Luke.  This  is  Mr.  Presson,  chairman  of  the 
State  Committee,  elder.  Now  that  you're  getting  into 

49 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

politics  you'd  ought  to  be  acquainted  with  your  chief 
priest." 

But  Rev.  Mr.  Dudley,  not  approving  the  company 
that  the  State  chairman  was  keeping,  did  not  warm  up. 

"I  thank  you  for  your  pleasantries,  Mr.  Thornton," 
he  returned,  stiffly.  "  I  hope  your  sneers  may  make  you 
as  many  votes  to-day  as  they  have  in  the  past." 

"Well,  they  won't,"  blurted  a  voice  from  a  knot  of 
men  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs.  "  We're  getting  woke  up 
in  this  district.  And  it  ain't  going  to  be  an  empire  any 
longer." 

"I'm  rather  too  humble  a  man,  sir,  to  associate  with 
the  high  lords  of  politics,"  Mr.  Dudley  remarked  to  the 
chairman.  "The  Honorable  Thornton  has  always  been 
up  there.  I'm  simply  one  of  the  plain  people." 

"  And  it's  time  for  the  plain  people  to  have  their 
innings,"  declared  another  in  the  crowd. 

"The  pack  is  off!"  muttered  the  Duke  in  Presson's 
ear. 

"Why  don't  you  introduce  him  right,"  called  another. 
"  Reverend  Dudley  is  the  next  representative  from  this 
district,  Mr.  Chairman.  And  we  know  where  he  stands!" 

"  An  humble  little  platform  is  mine,"  stated  the  minis 
ter.  "  But  it's  down  where  all  can  step  aboard  with  me. 
That's  all  I  can  say." 

There  was  a  growl  of  approval  in  chorus  from  the 
larger  group  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs.  Thornton's  men 
were  at  one  side  and  looked  troubled. 

"War  Eagle"  Ivus  Niles  stepped  forth  then.  He  had 
recovered  his  buck  sheep.  He  was  hoarse,  but  still  full 
of  zeal. 

"  I  want  to  ask  you  this,  Tyrant  Thornton :  You  ain't 
quite  so  sure  that  you're  Lord  Gull,  monarch  of  all  you 
survey,  since  my  brother  Bartholomew  showed  you  the 
power  of  the  law  triumphant,  are  you?"  But  the  taunt 
did  not  alter  the  tolerant  smile  on  the  Duke's  face. 

5° 


A  CAUCUS,  AS  IT  WAS  PLANNED 

"Go  ahead  and  get  in  all  your  yelps,"  he  said,  under 
his  breath.  "A  hound  loves  company." 

"When  we  start  in  to  purify,  we  propose  to  purify 
in  good  shape!"  cried  another.  "And  a  reverend  elder 
ain't  a  mite  too  good  for  us  as  representative  to  the 
legislature." 

"  Some  people  think  they  are  purifying  when  they  burn 
a  rag,"  observed  the  Duke,  serenely.  He  lighted  an 
other  cigar,  beaming  through  the  smoke  on  the  glower 
ing  minister. 

"  Don't  take  that  wrong,  elder.  I  respect  decency  in 
politics.  I  respect  men  who  are  trying  to  clean  things 
up.  But  before  I'll  let  you  disinfect  me,  I'll  have  to  see 
your  license  and  know  what  system  you're  using." 

"You've  got  to  fight  the  devil  with  fire!"  roared  the 
War  Eagle. 

"  You  mustn't  steal  my  own  plan  of  campaigning, 
Ivus.  I've  got  a  copyright  on  that." 

He  had  been  studying  the  situation  there  outside  the 
town  hall  while  he  talked.  Two  men  from  the  shire 
town,  wearing  the  nickel  badges  of  deputy  sheriffs,  stood 
at  the  foot  of  the  stairs.  A  group  of  men  that  he  knew 
to  be  his  loyal  supporters  from  his  own  village  were  stand 
ing  at  one  side.  He  strolled  over  to  them. 

"  Squire  Thornton,"  said  one,  "  we're  barred  out  of  this 
caucus.  They  won't  let  us  up." 

And  still  their  leader  was  imperturbable.  He  turned 
inquiring  gaze  on  the  Reverend  Dudley,  and  that  gentle 
man  declared  himself  with  suspicious  haste. 

"This  is  going  to  be  a  strictly  Republican  caucus,  and 
the  check-list  has  been  marked,"  he  said.  "We  don't 
propose  to  have  Democrats  come  in  and  run  our  affairs 
for  us." 

It  was  a  challenge  thrown  down  in  good  earnest. 

In  spite  of  the  warning  that  his  scout  had  brought  to 
him,  the  Duke  had  hardly  believed  that  amateur  politi- 

5  Si 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

cians  would  go  to  this  extreme.  More  than  ever  he  real 
ized  that  unscrupulous  men  higher  up  were  using  these 
tools.  And  it  was  plain  that  the  instruments  had  been 
tutored  to  believe  that  the  end  justified  the  means. 
What  Ivus  Niles  said  about  the  devil  and  fire  betrayed 
them. 

The  Duke  walked  over  to  the  minister,  and  took  him 
by  the  lapels  of  his  coat. 

"  Elder,"  he  protested,  "  I  don't  like  to  see  a  good  man 
used  for  tongs  in  politics.  There's  a  lot  you  don't  know 
aboat  this  game.  You're  in  wrong." 

"  You're  not  the  right  man  to  tell  me  so,  Mr.  Thornton. 
I  represent  reform.  It's  time  we  had  it.  And  your 
gospel  in  politics  isn't  my  gospel." 

"You've  got  the  revised  version,  Parson  Dudley, 
if  you  find  a  text  in  it  about  splitting  a  caucus  at  the 
door  of  the  hall." 

"The  sheep  shall  be  divided  from  the  goats,  sir." 

"  You've  got  this  caucus  and  the  Judgment  Day 
mixed,  elder."  He  released  the  minister  and  stepped 
back.  "  I  never  yet  talked  rough  to  a  parson.  But 
you've  cut  loose  from  common  sense.  When  you  get 
down  on  a  level  with  me  at  a  caucus  door  you're  no 
parson — you're  a  politician,  and  you'll  have  to  let  me 
say  that  you're  a  blasted  poor  one.  You're  Enoch 
Dudley,  now.  And  I  want  to  tell  you,  Enoch,  that 
neither  you  nor  any  bunch  of  steers  you  happen  to  be 
teaming  can  keep  legal  voters  out  of  that  hall.  As  to 
whether  this  or  that  man  can  vote  in  the  caucus,  that 
will  be  settled  when  we  get  in  there.  But  these  men 
of  mine  are  going  in.  It's  up  to  you  to  decide  whether 
they  shall  go  in  as  lions  or  lambs." 

"Violence  shall  rest  on  your  own  head!"  cried  the 
minister.  "I'll  see  that  the  world  knows  about  it." 

"  We'll  see  whose  case  shows  up  best  when  the  report 
is  made,"  retorted  the  Duke.  "But  I'm  done  arguing. 

52 


A  CAUCUS,  AS  IT  WAS  PLANNED 

Pull  off  those  deputies."  Sheriff  Niles  appeared  at  that 
moment.  He  had  left  his  subalterns  to  store  the  con 
fiscated  liquors. 

"  Niles,  pull  your  men  off  the  door,  here,"  commanded 
the  Duke.  "  Your  county  politics  hasn't  any  business  at 
our  caucus  here  to-day." 

"I've  been  asked  to  keep  this  caucus  regular,  and  I'm 
going  to  do  it,"  insisted  the  sheriff. 

"So  am  I,"  agreed  Thornton.  "So  when  the  story 
goes  out  it  will  have  to  be  said  that  you  and  I  were  work 
ing  together  to  keep  politics  pure."  The  faithful  Syl 
vester  was  hovering  on  the  outskirts  of  the  crowd. 
Thornton  beckoned  to  him  and  he  came.  The  Duke 
had  probed  the  scheme  and  understood  the  stubbornness 
of  the  opposition.  He  was  ready  to  act  now. 

"  Sylvester,  you're  a  constable  of  this  town,  Take 
those  fifty  woodsmen  over  there  as  a  special  posse.  I'm 
going  to  stand  here  at  the  foot  of  these  stairs,  and  see 
to  it  that  this  caucus  isn't  packed.  If  you  see  hand  laid 
on  me  or  on  a  respectable  voter  going  up  these  stairs, 
you  pile  in  with  those  men.  Go  ahead  up,  boys,  one  and 
all!"  He  stepped  between  the  deputies  and  beckoned 
to  the  voters.  He  stood  there  like  a  lighthouse  mark 
ing  safe  channel.  He  challenged  both  the  sheriff  and 
the  minister  with  his  gaze.  "We've  got  peace  in  stock 
and  fight  on  tap,  gentlemen,"  he  declared.  "Full 
assortment,  and  no  trouble  to  show  goods." 

The  village  loyalists  trooped  forward  promptly  and 
flocked  up.  The  deputies  made  no  effort  to  stop  them. 
Niles  did  not  issue  orders.  Threats  and  badges  might 
cow  voters.  But  he  knew  woodsmen.  He  was  not  pre 
pared  to  fight  fifty  of  them. 

The  opposition  hurried  up  also.  Men  streamed  past 
on  both  sides  of  the  old  man,  looming  there  in  his 
wrinkled  suit  of  crash. 

"  Let  'em  go.  We've  got  him  licked  in  the  caucus 

53 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

anyway,"  growled  Niles  to  one  of  his  deputies.  "The 
back  districts  are  here  two  to  one  against  his  village 
crowd." 

Chairman  Presson  stood  at  one  side  and  waited. 
Harlan  Thornton  came  to  him,  leading  his  horse  through 
the  crowd. 

"  You  have  influence  with  my  grandfather,  Mr. 
Presson.  You  have  told  me  yourself  that  it's  folly  to 
try  to  send  me  to  the  legislature.  I'm  not  fitted  for 
such  duties.  I  am  interested  only  in  our  business. 
You  have  had  a  chance  to  talk  with  him  since  you  left 
the  house.  Haven't  you  made  him  change  his  mind?" 

"I  don't  know,"  confessed  Mr.  Presson.  "He's  got 
my  opinion,  but  he  doesn't  seem  to  think  it's  worth 
much." 

"Well,  there's  only  one  thing  to  do,"  stated  Harlan, 
resolutely.  "  I'll  stand  up  here  and  let  the  voters  of  this 
district  know  how  I  feel  about  it.  I've  got  my  own 
rights  in  this  thing,  grandfather  or  no  grandfather." 

"Harlan,  my  boy!"  The  State  chairman  laid  his 
hand  protestingly  on  the  young  man's  arm.  "  You've 
got  my  sympathy  in  regard  to  your  going  to  the  legisla 
ture  in  this  fashion.  But  let  me  say  something  to  you. 
Thelismer  Thornton  is  standing  here  to-day  putting 
up  as  pretty  a  political  fight  as  I  ever  looked  on.  I  hope 
he'll  change  his  mind  about  sending  you.  I'll  talk  with 
him  again.  But  if  you  lift  one  finger  now  when  he's  got 
his  back  against  the  wall  you'll  be  a  disgrace  to  your 
family.  Take  that  from  me.  You'd  better  hop  on 
your  horse  and  ride  off  where  the  air  is  better." 

After  a  moment  of  sombre  reflection  the  young  man 
swung  himself  to  the  back  of  his  horse  and  galloped 
away.  The  look  that  he  got  from  his  grandfather  when 
he  departed  did  not  enlighten  or  reassure  him. 

The  little  square  of  the  town  house  was  pretty  well 
cleared  by  this  time.  The  voters  had  crowded  into  the 

54 


A  CAUCUS,  AS  IT  WAS  PLANNED 

hall.  One  of  the  last  men  to  pass  the  Duke  hesitated 
on  the  stairs  and  came  back.  He  was  a  short,  chunky, 
very  much  troubled  gentleman.  He  had  slunk  rather 
than  walked  past.  He  came  back  with  the  air  known 
as  "meeching." 

"  I'm  afraid  you're  going  to  misunderstand  me,  Mr. 
Thornton." 

The  Duke  offered  no  opinion. 

"  I  hardly  know  how  to  go  to  work  to  explain  myself 
in  this  matter,"  faltered  the  apologist. 

"Considering  that  I  got  your  appropriation  for  your 
seminary  doubled  last  session  in  the  stingiest  year  since 
the  grasshoppers  ate  up  Egypt,  I  should  think  you'd 
find  it  just  a  little  troublesome  convincing  me  that  Enoch 
Dudley  has  got  any  claim  over  my  interests  so  far  's  you're 
concerned.  What's  the  matter  with  you, Professor?" 

He  invited  the  State  chairman  toward  them  by  a  toss 
of  his  head.  His  tone  had  been  severe,  but  there  was 
humor  in  his  eyes. 

"This  is  Principal  Tute,  of  the  Canibas  Seminary, 
Luke.  You  remember  the  cussing  I  got  from  the 
Finance  Committee  for  holding  up  the  bill  till  I  got  the 
Professor's  appropriation  doubled.  He's  trying  to  tell 
me  how  much  obliged  he  is." 

Mr.  Tute  looked  very  miserable. 

"  I've  always  said  you  were  the  best  man  this  district 
ever  had  in  the  legislature.  I've  stood  up  and  said  that 
in  the  open,  Mr.  Thornton.  You're  an  institution  down 
to  the  capitol.  When  there  was  talk  of  a  change  for 
the  sake  of  reform — and  you  know  I'm  teaching  reform 
principles  in  my  school,  Mr.  Thornton,"  he  hastened 
on  desperately;  "I'm  teaching  sociological  principles  in 
accordance  with  the  advanced  movement,  and  if  I  don't 
practice  what  I  preach  I'm  false  to  my  pupils,  and — 

"  You're  going  to  vote  against  me  to-day,  are  you, 
Tute?" 

55 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  I've  said  right  along  we  ought  to  bear  with  you  so 
long  as  you  lived  and  wanted  to  be  elected." 

"Like  the  seven  years'  itch,  eh?" 

"  But  you  are  trying  to  make  us  mere  serfs  in  politics 
by  dictating  our  choice,  and  what  I  teach  of  the  prin 
ciples  of  democracy- 
Thornton  tapped  the  little  man  on  the  shoulder. 

"What  they've  done,  Tute,  is  come  up  here  with  a 
dose  to  fit  the  palate  of  every  one  of  you  fellows,  and 
you  don't  know  enough  to  understand  that  you're  being 
handled.  You're  going  to  vote  against  me,  are  you?" 

"  I  call  on  this  gentleman  to  witness  that  I  say  you're 
the  best  man  for  the  place.  You're  able,  you're  efficient, 
and  you  have  done  an  immense  amount  of  good  for  your 
constituents,  and  you — 

"But  you  won't  vote  for  me  to-day,  eh?"  reiterated 
the  old  man,  pitilessly. 

Mr.  Tute  started  again  on  his  line  of  fulsome  praise, 
but  the  Duke  checked  him  brusquely. 

"That  will  do,  Professor  Tute.  I  like  cake.  I  like 
it  frosted.  But  I'll  be  d — d  if  I  want  it  all  frosting. 
Run  up  into  the  hall.  Come  along,  Luke.  We'll  miss 
the  text  if  we  don't  get  in." 

The  last  of  the  stragglers  followed  them  up  the  stairs. 


CHAPTER  VI 

A   CAUCUS,    AND    HOW    IT    WAS    RUN 

HE  earlier  arrivals  had  pushed  the  settees 
of  the  Fort  Canibas  town  hall  to  one  side. 
They  were  piled  against  an  end  wall. 
There  were  not  enough  of  them  to  furnish 
seats  for  that  mob.  For  that  matter, 
voters  seemed  to  have  no  inclination  to 
sit  down  that  day.  There  was  barely  enough  standing- 
room  when  all  had  entered  the  hall. 

Through  them,  friends  and  foes  jostling  each  other, 
the  Duke  took  his  leisurely  way.  Presson  was  close 
behind  him. 

The  rostrum,  elevated  a  few  feet  above  the  main  floor, 
was  enclosed  by  boarding  that  came  almost  to  the 
shoulders  of  those  who  stood  within.  Thornton,  arrived 
at  the  front  of  the  hall,  put  his  shoulders  against  the 
boarding,  shoved  his  hands  into  his  trousers  pockets, 
and  gazed  into  the  faces  of  his  constituents.  He  was 
still  amiable.  But  Presson  sulked.  It  was  hot  in  there, 
and  the  proletariat  was  unkempt  and  smoked  rank 
tobacco. 

"  It's  worth  your  while  just  the  same,  Luke,"  advised 
Thornton ,  in  an  undertone.  He  was  conscious  of  the  chair 
man's  disgust,  and  it  amused  him.  "They're  going  to 
have  real  caucuses  in  this  State  this  year,  they  tell  me. 
And  this  seems  to  be  a  nice  little  working  model  of  the 
real  thing.  Better  study  it.  It  '11  give  you  points  on 
'popular  unrest,'  as  the  newspapers  are  calling  it." 

57 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

The  men  in  the  pen  above  them  were  having  an  ani 
mated  discussion.  They  were  the  members  of  the  town 
committee.  Thornton  craned  his  neck  and  looked  up 
at  them.  One  of  his  loyal  friends  was  there. 

"What's  the  matter,  Tom?     Why  not  call  to  order?" 

The  man  gave  him  a  cautious  wink  before  replying. 

"There  don't  seem  to  be  any  copy  of  the  call  here, 
Squire.  Some  of  'em  says  we'll  waive  the  reading  of  it. 
I  say  no.  I  say  we  don't  want  any  holler  to  go  out  that 
this  caucus  wasn't  run  regular." 

"It's  only  a  ' technetical '  point,  anyway,"  protested 
one  of  the  disputants. 

"  Well,  I  wouldn't  allow  too  many  of  those  '  technetical ' 
points  to  get  by  in  a  caucus  that  you're  ready  to  adver 
tise  under  your  reform  headlines,"  advised  the  Duke. 
He  settled  himself  against  the  boarding  again.  "  Better 
give  us  straight  work,  boys." 

It  was  not  a  threat.  But  it  operated  as  effectually. 
A  member  of  the  town  committee  rapped  for  silence, 
and  explained  the  situation  rather  shamefacedly.  He 
asked  the  voters  to  be  patient  until  the  call  could  be 
prepared  in  the  regular  way. 

"  And  now  comes  War  Eagle  Niles  to  help  us  kill  time," 
observed  Thornton.  The  agitator  was  pushing  toward 
them.  Men  were  urging  him  forward.  It  was  evident 
that  baiting  their  autocrat  had  become  the  favorite 
diversion  of  Fort  Canibas'  voters  that  day. 

"Perhaps  it  was  all  right  once  for  politicians  to  lead 
people  by  the  nose,  but  it  ain't  all  right  now,"  stated 
Niles,  as  soon  as  he  had  squirmed  into  a  favorable  posi 
tion  for  attack.  "  People  didn't  know,  once.  They 
didn't  have  newspapers,  nor  grange  discussions,  nor 
lecturers,  nor  anything  to  keep  'em  posted.  They  let 
themselves  be  led." 

"  Don't  let  yourself  be  led,  Ivus.  You're  more  in 
teresting  as  you  are  now,  bolting  with  your  head  and 

58 


A    CAUCUS,   AND    HOW    IT   WAS    RUN 

tail  up.  But  I  wonder  whether  you  know  just  what  it 
was  you  shied  at?" 

"Know?  You  bet  I  know!"  shouted  the  demagogue. 
"  How  about  taxes  ?  I'm  paying  more  to-day  on  my 
little  farm  out  back  there  than  you're  paying  on  a 
whole  township  of  your  wild  lands.  And  don't  you 
suppose  I  know  how  it's  all  arranged?" 

"  Why,  Ivus,  I  suppose  the  chaps  that  have  paid  you 
to  go  around  this  district  shooting  your  mouth  off  about 
'tyrants'  have  supplied  you  with  plenty  of  ammunition. 
Go  ahead!  I'd  like  to  know  how  it  was  arranged,  ac 
cording  to  their  notions." 

"  Who  was  that  man  that  drove  up  to  your  house  this 
morning  in  his  devil  machine,  that  cost  more  than  my 
whole  stand  of  farm  buildings  twice  over  —  that  man 
that's  standing  there  beside  you  now,  sneering  at  the 
voters  of  this  State  that  he's  been  teaming?  That's 
the  Honor'ble  Presson.  He's  chairman  of  the  State 
Committee.  He  runs  the  big  hotel  down  to  the  capitol 
city.  And  where  does  he  get  money  to  buy  automobiles 
with  ?  I  know.  It's  out  of  selling  rum  over  his  bar — 
and  there's  a  law  in  the  State  constitution  that  makes 
selling  rum  a  jail  offence.  But  you  don't  see  him  in 
jail,  do  you?" 

Astonishment  that  changed  to  fury  nearly  paralyzed 
the  honorable  chairman's  tongue  while  Niles  proceeded 
that  far.  When  he  did  find  his  voice  to  protest,  the  War 
Eagle  turned  from  him  to  the  Duke  like  one  who  finds 
a  weapon  in  each  hand  and  becomes  reckless. 

"  And  no  one  sees  you  coming  up  and  paying  taxes  on 
what  you're  really  worth.  It's  all:  'You  scratch  my 
back,  I'll  scratch  yours!'  among  the  big  fellows  in  this 
State.  You  can  break  all  the  laws  you  want  to  if  you're 
in  the  right  ring.  And  it's  going  to  have  a  stop  put  to 
it!" 

"Go  ahead,  Ivus!"  encouraged  his  object  of  attack. 

59 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  If  she's  as  sick  as  all  that,  she  needs  medicine  quick. 
Get  out  your  dose." 

"The  people  is  going  to  be  reckoned  with  now,"  de 
claimed  Niles,  banging  his  knotted  fist  against  the 
boarding. 

"  You  mean  of  course  The  People — spelled  with  a 
capital  T  and  a  capital  P,  the  same  as  you  see  it  in  those 
reform  newspapers  you've  mentioned!  Now,  boys,  I 
want  you  all  to  listen  to  me  just  one  moment.  You 
know  I'm  no  hand  to  make  speeches.  But  just  let's 
talk  this  over.  It'  11  take  only  a  jiffy.  There's  a  little 
time  to  kill  while  we're  getting  this  caucus  started  reg 
ular.  Now,  some  of  these  newspaper  editors,  who 
never  get  anywhere  out  of  their  offices  except  home  to 
dinner,  are  writing  a  lot  just  now  about  THE  PEOPLE — 
in  capital  letters,  understand !  Talking  about  'em  like  as 
though  they  were  a  great  force  in  politics — always  or 
ganized  and  ready  to  support  reform.  Only  needed  to 
be  called  on.  Fellows  like  Ivus  here,  that  read  and 
read  and  never  bump  up  next  to  real  things  outside,  get 
to  think  that  The  People  make  up  an  angel  band  that's 
all  ready  to  march  right  up  to  the  ballot-box  and  vote 
for  just  the  right  thing.  Only  have  to  be  called  on!" 

The  voters  were  crowding  closer  and  listening.  There 
was  a  half-smile  on  his  face  while  he  talked.  He  was  not 
patronizing.  But  he  took  them  into  his  confidence  with 
simple  directness. 

"  Boys,  I  don't  know  where  you'll  go  to  find  that 
angel  band!" 

"  The  people  of  this  State  are  gettin'  woke  up  enough 
to  know!"  cried  a  voice.  The  man  stepped  forward. 
It  was  Davis.  "  I  say  to  you  again,  Mr.  Thornton, 
don't  put  us  all  on  the  plane  of  Ivus  Niles." 

The  Duke  was  not  ruffled  by  the  interruption. 

"  Walt,  I've  been  in  politics  a  good  many  years.  I  was 
in  the  House  in  this  State  when  Jim  Elaine  was  there 

60 


A    CAUCUS,  AND    HOW   IT    WAS    RUN 

reporting  for  his  newspaper.  I  want  to  tell  you  that 
when  you  get  next  to  the  real  thing  in  politics  you'll  find 
that  this  people  thing — the  capital-letter  idea — is  a  dream. 
Yes,  it  is,  now!  Don't  undertake  to  dispute  me!  Here 
in  one  town  you'll  find  a  man  or  a  set  of  men  handling  a 
bunch.  A  county  clique  handles  another  one.  Some 
especial  local  interest  makes  this  crowd  vote  one  way; 
same  thing  will  make  another  bunch  in  another  town 
mad  and  they'll  vote  against  it.  It's  all  factions  and 
self-interest,  and  you  can't  make  it  over  into  anything 
different.  That's  practical  politics.  Get  out  and  you'll 
see  it  for  yourself.  You  can  swap  and  steer — that's 
politics.  But  as  for  uniting  'em  into  The  People — well, 
try  to  weld  a  cat's  tail  and  a  tallow  candle,  and  see  how 
you  get  along!" 

"It's  high  time  we  had  less  politics,  then,"  cried 
Davis,  "when  politics  lets  the  picked  and  chosen  get 
rich  selling  rum  or  dodging  taxes,  and  takes  a  poor  man 
and  pestles  his  head  into  the  mortar  till  every  cent  is 
banged  out  of  his  pocket!" 

"  Davis,  I'm  patient  with  ramrodders  when  they're 
having  an  acute  attack  like  you're  having.  It's  the 
chronic  cases  I  get  after,  the  ones  who  are  in  it  for  profit, 
and  have  been  poking  you  fellows  up  because  they're 
paid  for  doing  it.  All  of  a  sudden  all  of  you  are  yapping 
at  me  because  I've  played  the  game.  I'm  talking  busi 
ness  with  you  now.  I  suppose  I  might  spread-eagle  to 
you  about  our  grand  old  State,  and  the  call  of  duty  and 
the  noble  principles  of  reform;  I  might  fly  up  on  this 
fence  here  and  crow  just  as  loud  as  any  of  those  reform 
roosters,  and  not  have  any  more  sense  in  what  I  was 
saying  than  they  do.  I  see  you've  got  hungry  for  that 
revival  hoorah.  But  I'm  not  going  to  perch  and  crow 
for  the  sake  of  getting  three  cheers!  I'm  going  to  stay 
right  down  here  on  the  gravel  with  you,  boys,  and 
scratch  a  few  times,  and  show  you  a  few  kernels,  and  cluck 

6 1 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

a  little  business  talk.  This  district— you  and  your  folks 
before  you — has  been  sending  me  to  the  legislature  for 
a  good  many  years.  I'm  an  ordinary  man,  and  I've  been 
against  ordinary  men  down  there  at  the  State  House. 
I  should  have  played  the  game  different  with  angels,  but 
I  couldn't  find  the  angels." 

He  pointed  through  a  window  to  a  large  building  that 
occupied  a  hilltop  just  outside  the  village. 

"  Half  the  counties  in  the  State  were  after  that  train 
ing  seminary,"  he  went  on.  "  I  beat  the  lobby,  and  got 
it.  How  much  money  do  you  and  your  neighbors  make 
boarding  the  scholars  ?  I  have  pulled  out  State  money 
for  more  than  a  thousand  miles  of  State  roads  in  this 
county.  I  got  the  State  to  pay  every  cent  of  the  expense 
of  that  iron  bridge  across  the  river.  I  lugged  off  bigger 
appropriations  for  my  district  than  any  other  man 
who  has  been  in  the  House — because  I  know  the  ropes 
and  have  the  pull.  I  could  have  played  angel,  and  not 
brought  home  a  plum.  Would  that  suit  you?" 

"I  ain't  detracting  from  what  you  got  for  us.  But 
while  you  was  dipping  with  your  right  hand  for  us,  you 
was  dipping  with  your  left  hand  for  yourself  and  them 
that  trained  with  you,"  retorted  Davis. 

"And  I  wasn't  to  take  any  ordinary,  human,  business 
precautions  about  looking  out  for  myself  in  any  way, 
then?" 

"  You  wasn't  supposed  to  be  representing  yourself 
down  there." 

"For  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  every  two  years, 
and  my  mileage,  I  was  to  give  up  all  my  own  business  and 
my  interests,  and  play  statesman,  pure  and  holy,  for  you 
up  here?  Refuse  to  help  those  men  down  there  who 
helped  me  when  I  wanted  something,  and  go  down  in 
the  rotunda  twice  a  day  and  thumb  my  nose  at  the  por 
traits  of  the  fathers  of  the  State  because  they  played 
politics  in  their  time  ?  That  what  you  wanted  me  to  do  ?" 

62 


A    CAUCUS,   AND    HOW    IT   WAS    RUN 

"I've  only  got  this  to  say,"  retorted  Mr.  Davis,  afraid 
to  argue:  "You're  proposing  to  jam  your  grandson 
down  our  throats,  now  that  you've  made  your  pile  and 
got  tired.  You're  going  to  have  a  man  from  this  dis 
trict  that  will  do  what  you  say  and  keep  on  flimflamming 
the  people.  I  and  them  with  me  say  no,  and  we'll  show 
you  as  much  in  the  caucus  to-day." 

"  For  the  sake  of  having  your  own  stubborn  way — like 
most  of  the  others  that  are  howling  about  'The  People' 
in  this  State  just  now — you  are  ready  to  tip  over  this 
district's  apple-cart,  are  you?  Is  that  what  you  are 
trying  to  do  ?  You  take  what  I  have  given  you,  legisla 
tion  and  money  that  I've  paid  for  labor  in  this  section, 
and  then  propose  to  kick  my  pride  in  the  tenderest 
place?  I'll  show  you,  Davis!" 

"Well,  show!     We  ain't  a  mite  scared." 

For  some  moments  the  throng  in  the  town  hall  had 
shown  waning  interest  in  this  discussion.  There  seemed 
to  be  matters  outside  that  distracted  the  attention  of 
those  near  the  windows. 

"There's  a  fire  up  Jo  Quacca  way!"  called  some  one. 
The  windows  of  town  hall  were  high  and  uncurtained. 
All  could  see.  Smoke,  ominous  and  yellow,  ballooned 
in  huge  volumes  across  the  blue  sky  of  the  June  day. 

"There  ain't  no  bonfire  in  that,  gents,"  declared  a 
man.  "  That  fire  has  got  a  start,  and  if  it's  in  that  slash 
from  that  logging  operation,  it  ain't  going  to  be  put 
out  with  no  pint  dipperful." 

There  was  sudden  hush  in  the  big  room.  All  men  were 
gazing  at  the  mounting  masses  that  rolled  into  the 
heavens  and  blossomed  bodefully  over  the  wooded  hills. 
Fat  clouds  of  the  smoke  hung  high  and  motionless. 
From  the  earth  went  up  to  them  whirls  and  spirals  and 
billowing  discharges  like  smoke  from  noiseless  artillery. 

A  man  had  climbed  upon  a  window-sill  of  the  hall  in 
order  to  see  more  clearly. 

63 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"I  tell  you,  boys,"  he  shouted,  "that's  a  racin'  fire, 
and  it's  in  that  Jo  Quacca  slash!  I,  for  one,  have  got  a 
stand  of  buildin's  in  front  of  that  fire." 

He  jumped  down  and  started  for  the  door.  Several 
men  followed  him. 

The  chairman  of  the  town  committee  began  to  shake 
a  paper  above  his  head. 

"It's  no  time  to  be  leaving  a  caucus,"  he  pleaded. 
"  We've  fixed  up  a  new  call.  We'll  get  down  to  business 
now." 

"I  know  where  my  business  is  just  this  minute!" 
shouted  the  man  who  was  leading  the  first  volunteers. 
"And  it  ain't  in  politics." 

The  chairman  tried  to  put  a  motion  to  adjourn,  but 
at  that  moment  the  meeting-house  bell  began  to  clang 
its  alarm. 

"Save  your  property,  you  Jo  Quacca  fellows!"  some 
one  cried,  and  the  crowd  stampeded. 

Thornton  remained  in  his  place  in  front  of  the  rostrum. 
He  noted  who  were  running  away.  The  deserters  were 
the  back-district  voters — the  opposition  among  whom 
his  enemies  had  prevailed.  The  villagers  remained. 
Here  and  there  among  them  walked  Talleyrand  Sylvester. 
He  was  unobtrusive  and  he  spoke  low,  but  he  was 
earnest. 

When  at  last  the  chairman  made  his  voice  heard,  Ivus 
Niles  was  shouting  for  recognition.  That  stern  patriot 
had  remained  on  guard. 

"  Maybe  my  house  is  burning,  gents,  but  I  ain't  going 
to  desert  my  post  of  duty  till  a  square  deal  has  been 
given.  I  call  on  you  to  adjourn  this  caucus  till  evening." 

"Question!"  was  the  chorus  that  assailed  the  chair 
man.  The  villagers  crowded  around  the  rostrum. 

The  motion  to  adjourn  was  voted  down  with  a  viva 
voce  vote  there  was  no  disputing. 

"It  ain't  just  nor  right!"  squalled  the  War  Eagle. 

64 


A    CAUCUS,    AND    HOW    IT    WAS    RUN 

"I'm  here  to  protest!     You  ain't  giving  the  voters  a 
show!     This  thing  sha'n't  be  bulled  through  this  way!" 

But  that  caucus  was  out  of  the  hands  of  Mr.  Niles 
and  such  as  he,  though  some  of  the  staunchest  of  Thorn 
ton's  opposition  had  remained  to  fight. 

Sylvester  elbowed  his  way  to  the  front,  his  followers  at 
his  back. 

"  I  move,  Mr.  Chairman,  that  the  check-list  be  dis 
pensed  with.  It  ain't  ever  been  used  in  this  caucus, 
anyway.  And  I'm  in  favor  of  hustling  this  thing  so 
that  we  can  all  get  up  there  and  fight  that  fire.  I  don't 
believe  in  staying  here  caucusing,  and  let  folks'  property 
burn  up." 

The  opposition  howled  their  wrath.  They  under 
stood  all  the  hypocrisy  of  this  bland  assertion,  but  pro 
test  amounted  to  nothing.  The  voters  were  behind 
Sylvester.  That  gentleman  promptly  put  in  nomination 
the  name  of  Harlan  Thornton  for  representative  to  the 
legislature  from  the  Canibas  class  of  towns  and  planta 
tions,  and  the  choice  was  affirmed  by  a  yell  that  made  the 
protesting  chorus  seem  only  a  feeble  chirp.  And  then 
the  caucus  adjourned  tumultuously. 

Through  it  all  Thclismer  Thornton  stood  with  shoulders 
against  the  boarding,  that  quizzical  half-smile  on  his 
face.  He  walked  out  of  the  hall  past  the  outraged  Ivus 
Niles  without  losing  that  smile,  though  the  demagogue 
followed  him  to  the  door  with  frantic  threats  and 
taunts. 

The  meeting-house  bell  still  chattered  its  alarm,  an 
excited  ringer  rolling  the  wheel  over  and  over. 

Chairman  Presson,  who  had  found  speech  inadequate 
for  some  time,  followed  the  Duke  to  the  stairway  out 
side,  and  stood  beside  him,  gazing  up  at  the  conflagra 
tion.  Smoke  masked  the  hills.  Fire-flashes,  pallid  in 
the  afternoon  light,  shot  up  here  and  there  in  the  yellow 
billows  rolling  nearest  the  ground. 

65 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  I  tell  you,  Thelismer,  you'll  never  get  across  with 
this!  It's  too  devilish  rank!" 

Elder  Dudley  marched  past,  leading  the  last  stragglers 
of  his  following  from  the  hall.  His  face  was  flushed  with 
passion,  but  he  had  neither  word  nor  look  for  the  Duke. 
Even  Niles  was  silent,  bringing  up  the  rear  of  the  retreat, 
pumped  dry  of  invective. 

"  You'll  be  up  against  Dudley,  there,  at  the  polls, 
running  on  an  independent  ticket.  He's  sure  to  do  it!" 
went  on  Presson,  watching  them  out  of  sight. 

"You  don't  know  the  district,"  said  Thornton,  serene 
ly.  "  And  what's  more  important,  I've  got  almost  three 
months  to  meet  that  possibility  in.  I  had  only  three 
hours  to-day.  You  needn't  worry  about  the  election, 
Luke." 

With  his  eyes  still  on  the  seething  smoke  vomiting  up 
from  the  Jo  Quacca  hills  he  lighted  a  fresh  cigar. 

"  There's  something  up  there  that's  worrying  me  more. 
Cobb  has  got  fire  enough  to  break  up  a  State  conven 
tion." 

Certain  columns  of  smoke  shot  up,  bearing  knobs  like 
hideous  mushrooms.  The  knobs  were  black  with  cinders 
and  spangled  with  sparks.  The  menace  they  bore  could 
be  descried  even  at  that  distance.  A  breeze  wrenched 
off  one  of  those  knobs,  and  carried  it  out  from  the  main 
conflagration.  The  roof  of  a  barn  half-way  down  the 
hillside  began  to  smoke.  Sparks  had  dropped  there. 
After  a  time  the  two  men  could  see  trickles  of  fire  run 
ning  up  the  shingles. 

"There  goes  one  stand  of  buildings,"  announced 
Thornton. 

"I  swear,  you  take  this  thing  cool  enough!" 

"Well,  I'm  not  a  rain-storm  or  a  pipe-line,  Luke. 
There's  nothing  more  I  can  do.  When  Sylvester  gets 
there  with  his  crowd  I'll  have  a  hundred  men  or  so  of 
my  own  fighting  it.  And  if  a  man  sets  fire  on  his  land 

66 


A    CAUCUS,    AND    HOW    IT    WAS    RUN 

the  law  makes  him  pay  the  neighbors  if  the  fire  gets 
away  and  damages  them.  I'm  prepared  to  settle  with 
out  beating  down  prices.  Let's  go  over  to  The 
Barracks." 

Presson  went  along  grumbling. 

"  You  ought  to  have  stayed  in  this  fight  this  year  for 
yourself,  Thelismer.  There  was  no  need  of  all  this  up 
roar  in  ticklish  times.  A  proposition  like  this  makes 
the  general  campaign  all  the  harder."  He  kept  casting 
apprehensive  glances  behind  at  the  swelling  smoke- 
clouds. 

"I'm  paying  the  freight,  Luke." 

"  There'd  have  been  no  fight  to  it  if  you'd  stayed  in 
yourself.  Even  your  old  whooping  cyclone  of  a  Niles, 
there,  said  that  much.  You've  gone  to  work  and  got 
your  grandson  nominated,  but  between  him  and  the 
bunch  and  that  fire  up  there  it  looks  to  me  as  though 
your  troubles  were  just  beginning.  Say,  look  here, 
Thelismer,  honest  to  gad,  you're  using  our  politics  just 
to  grind  your  own  axes  with!" 

"  And  you  never  heard  of  anybody  except  patriots  in 
politics,  eh  ?" 

"When  you  prejudice  a  State  campaign  in  order  to 
break  up  a  spooning-match  and  to  give  your  grandson 
a  course  of  sprouts  outside  a  lumbering  operation,  you're 
making  it  a  little  too  personal — and  a  little  too  expensive 
for  all  concerned." 

The  State  chairman  had  his  eyes  on  the  fire  again. 

"  As  far  as  my  business  goes — that's  my  business," 
said  the  Duke,  placidly.  "As  for  the  expense — well, 
I  never  got  a  great  deal  of  fun  out  of  anything  except 
politics,  and  politics  is  always  more  or  less  expensive. 
When  the  bills  get  in  for  what  has  happened  to-day 
I  reckon  I'll  find  the  job  was  worth  the  price.  You 
needn't  worry  about  me,  Luke — not  about  my  failing 
to  get  my  money's  worth.  For  when  I  walk  across  the 
6  67 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

lobby  of  the  State  House,  and  they  can  say  behind  my 
back,  'There's  old  Thornton — a  gone-by.  Got  licked 
in"  his  district!'  When  they  can  say  that,  Luke,  life 
won't  be  worth  living,  not  if  I've  got  thousand-dollar 
bills  enough  to  wad  a  forty-foot  driving-crew  quilt!" 


CHAPTER   VII 

WITH    THE    KAVANAGH    AT    HOME 

HEN  Harlan  Thornton  rode  away  out  of 
the  yard  of  the  town  house  he  was  the 
bitterest  rebel  in  the  Duke's  dominions. 
But  he  realized  fully  the  futility  of  stand 
ing  there  in  public  and  wrangling  with  his 
grandfather. 

He  understood  pretty  well  the  ambitious  motive  his 
grandfather  had  in  forcing  his  will;  Thelismer  Thornton 
had  urged  the  matter  in  the  past.  It  had  been  the  only 
question  in  dispute  between  them.  And  the  young  man 
had  never  resented  the  urgings.  He  appreciated  what 
his  grandfather  hoped  to  accomplish  for  the  only  one 
who  bore  his  name.  But  this  high-handed  attempt  to 
shanghai  him  into  politics  outraged  his  independence. 
His  protests  had  been  unheeded.  The  old  man  had 
not  even  granted  him  an  interview  in  private,  where  he 
could  plead  his  own  case.  In  business  matters  they  had 
been  co-workers,  intimate  on  the  level  of  partnership, 
with  the  grandfather  asking  for  and  obeying  the  sug 
gestions  the  grandson  made.  On  a  sudden  Harlan  felt 
that  he  hardly  knew  this  old  man,  who  had  shown  him 
self  contemptuous,  harsh,  and  domineering.  And  then 
he  thought  of  the  girl  who  had  been  so  grievously  in 
sulted  in  his  presence,  and  he  rode  to  find  her. 

His  way  took  him  across  the  long  bridge  that  spanned 
the  river.  The  river  marked  the  boundary  -  line  of  his 
country.  After  that  day's  taste  of  the  politics  of  his 

69 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

native  land  he  felt  a  queer  sense  of  relief  when  he  found 
himself  on  foreign  soil. 

Beyond  the  little  church  and  its  burying-ground,  with 
the  tall  cross  in  its  centre,  the  road  led  up  the  river  hill 
to  the  edge  of  the  forest.  Here  was  set  Dennis  Kava- 
nagh's  house,  its  back  to  the  black  growth,  staring 
sullenly  with  its  little  windows  out  across  the  cleared 
farms  of  the  river  valley. 

To  one  who  knew  Kavanagh  it  seemed  to  typify  his 
attitude  toward  the  world.  He  had  seen  other  men 
clutching  and  grabbing.  He  had  clutched  and  grabbed 
with  the  best  of  them.  When  one  deals  with  squatter 
claims,  tax  titles,  forgotten  land  grants  and  other  com 
plications  that  tie  up  the  public  domain,  it  often  happens 
that  the  man  who  waits  for  the  right  to  prevail  finds  the 
more  unscrupulous  and  impetuous  rival  in  possession, 
and  claiming  rather  more  than  the  allowed  nine  points 
at  that.  So  Dennis  Kavanagh  had  played  the  game  as 
the  others  had  played  it.  When  one  looked  up  at  the 
house,  with  its  back  against  the  woods,  staring  with 
its  surly  window-eyes,  one  saw  the  resoluteness  of  the 
intrenched  Kavanagh  put  into  visible  form. 

The  dogs  came  racing  to  meet  Harlan.  They  knew 
him  as  their  mistress's  friend. 

She  was  sitting  on  the  broad  porch-rail  when  he  rode 
up,  and  he  swung  his  horse  close  and  patted  her  cheek 
as  one  greets  a  child.  She  smiled  wistfully  at  him. 

"  Am  I  impudent,  and  all  the  things  your  grandfather 
said?  I've  been  thinking  it  all  over,  Big  Boy,  as  I  was 
riding  home." 

"  You're  only  a  little  girl,  and  he  talked  to  you  as 
he'd  talk  to  one  of  our  lumber- jacks,"  he  burst  out, 
angrily.  "  It  was  shameful,  Clare.  I  never  saw  my 
grandfather  as  he  was  to-day.  He  has  used  me  just  as 
shamefully." 

"  I  suppose  I  haven't  had  the  bringing  up  a  girl  ought 

70 


WITH    THE    KAVANAGH    AT    HOME 

to  have,"  she  confessed.  "I  haven't  thought  much 
about  it  before.  There  was  nothing  ever  happened  to 
make  me  think  about  it.  I  was  just  Dennis  Kavanagh's 
girl,  without  any  mother  to  tell  me  better.  I  suppose  it 
has  been  wrong  for  me  to  ride  about  with  you.  But 
you  didn't  have  any  mother  and  I  didn't  have  any 
mother,  and  it — it  sort  of  seemed  to  make  us — I  don't 
know  how  to  say  it,  Big  Boy!  But  it  seemed  to  make  us 
related — just  as  though  I  had  a  brother  to  keep  me 
company.  I  suppose  it  has  been  wrong  when  you  look 
at  it  the  way  girls  have  to  look  at  such  things." 

He  gazed  on  her  compassionately.  A  few  ruthless 
words  had  broken  the  spell  of  childhood. 

There  was  shame  in  her  eyes  as  she  gazed  up  at  him. 
He  had  seen  the  flush  of  youth  and  joy  in  her  cheeks 
before — he  had  seen  the  happy  color  come  and  go  as 
they  had  met  and  parted.  But  this  hue  that  crept  up 
over  cheeks  and  brow  made  pity  grow  in  him. 

"  He  said — but  you  know  what  he  said !  And  it  isn't 
true.  You  know  it  isn't  true.  He  shamed  and  in 
sulted  me  because  I'm  a  girl — and  can't  a  girl  have  a 
friend  that's  tender  and  good  to  her?" 

"A  girl  can,"  he  said,  gravely,  "because  I'm  that 
friend,  Clare.  Perhaps  my  grandfather  cannot  under 
stand.  But  I'll  see  that  he  does.  We  are  to  have  some 
very  serious  talk  together,  he  and  I.  I'm  here  to  tell 
you,  little  girl,  that  I'm  grateful  because  you  sent  that 
message  into  the  woods  to  me.  I'm  not  going  to  allow 
myself  to  be  made  a  fool  of  in  any  such  fashion;  I'm  not 
going  to  be  sent  to  the  legislature." 

"  Oh,  I've  been  thinking — thinking  how  it  sounded 
— all  that  I  said,"  she  mourned.  "  It  all  came  to  me  as 
I  was  riding  home — after  what  your  grandfather  said. 
I  didn't  realize  what  kind  of  a  girl  I  must  seem  to  folks 
that  didn't  know.  But  you  know.  It  sounded  as 
though  I  was  claiming  you  for  myself,  when  I  didn't 


THE    RAMROD DERS 

want  you  to  go  away.  I'm  ashamed — ashamed!"  She 
averted  her  eyes  from  him.  The  crimson  in  her  cheeks 
was  deeper.  It  was  a  vandal  hand  that  had  wrecked  the 
little  shrine  of  her  childhood.  His  indignation  against 
Thelismer  Thornton  blazed  higher. 

But  Dennis  Kavanagh  knew  how  to  be  even  more 
brutal,  for  that  was  Dennis  Kavanagh's  style  of  attack. 
He  came  out  upon  the  porch,  a  broad,  stocky  chunk  of  a 
man,  with  eyebrows  sticking  up  like  the  horns  on  a  snail, 
and  the  eyes  beneath  them  keen  with  humor  of  the  grim 
and  pitiless  sort. 

"And  how  do  you  do  to-day,  Harlan  Thornton?"  he 
asked.  "And  how  is  that  old  gorilla  of  a  grandfather 
of  yours?  Though  you  needn't  tell  me,  for  I  don't  want 
to  know — not  unless  you  can  lighten  me  up  a  bit  by 
telling  me  that  he's  enjoying  his  last  sickness.  But 
right  now  while  I  think  of  it,  I  have  something  to  say 
to  you,  young  Thornton,  sir." 

The  young  man  stared  hard  at  him.  It  was  an  un 
wonted  tone  for  Kavanagh  to  employ.  Clare's  father, 
till  now,  had  not  included  Harlan  in  his  feud  with 
the  grandfather.  He  had  always  treated  him  with  a 
brusqueness  that  had  a  sort  of  good-humor  beneath  it. 
His  discourse  with  the  young  man  had  been  curt  and 
satiric  and  infrequent,  and  consisted  usually  in  mock 
messages  of  defiance  which  he  asked  to  have  delivered 
by  word  of  mouth  to  the  grandfather.  But  his  tone  now 
was  crisp  and  it  had  a  straight  business  ring. 

"  My  girl  will  be  sixteen  to-morrow.  She  is  done  with 
childhood  to-day.  Children  may  ride  cock-horse  and 
play  ring-around-a-rosy.  I  haven't  drawn  any  particular 
line  on  playfellows  up  to  now.  But  there  isn't  going 
to  be  any  playing  at  love,  sir." 

"I  never  have  played  at  love  with  your  daughter!" 
cried  Harlan,  shocked  and  indignant  at  this  sudden 
attack. 

72 


WITH    THE    KAVANAGH    AT    HOME 

"Well,  I'm  fixing  it  so  you  won't.  We  won't  argue 
about  what  lias  happened,  nor  we  won't  discuss  what 
might  happen.  All  is,  I  don't  propose  to  have  any 
grandson  of  old  Thornton  mixed  up  in  my  family.  I 
don't  like  the  breed.  You  take  that  word  back  to  him. 
I  hear  he's  been  making  talk.  He  made  some  talk 
to-day.  You  needn't  look  at  Clare,  young  man.  She 
didn't  tell  me.  But  it  came  across  to  me  mighty  sud 
den.  Others  heard,  too.  What  I  ought  to  do  is  go 
over  there  and  stripe  his  old  Yankee  hide  with  a  horse 
whip.  But  you  tell  him  for  me  that  that  would  be 
taking  too  much  stock  in  anything  that  a  politician  in 
your  politics-ridden  States  could  say.  That's  all. 
You've  got  it,  blunt  and  straight.  And,  by-the-way,  I 
understand  he's  making  a  politician  out  of  you,  too, 
to-day?  I'm  taking  this  thing  just  in  time!" 

The  young  man  and  the  girl  looked  at  each  other. 
It  was  a  pitiful,  appealing  glance  that  they  exchanged. 
Shame  surged  in  both  of  them.  In  that  gaze,  also,  was 
mutual  apology  for  the  ruthless  ones  who  had  dealt  such 
insult  that  day  in  their  hearing;  there  was  hopelessness 
that  any  words  from  them  to  each  other,  just  then,  could 
help  the  situation.  And  in  that  gaze,  too,  there  was 
proud  denial,  from  one  to  the  other,  that  anything  except 
friendship,  the  true,  honest  comradeship  of  youth,  had 
drawn  them  together. 

Kavanagh  eyed  them  writh  grim  relish.  The  thought 
that  he  was  harrying  one  of  the  Thorntons  overbore  any 
consideration  he  felt  for  his  daughter,  even  if  he  stopped 
to  think  that  her  affection  was  anything  except  the 
silliness  of  childhood. 

"  Politics  seems  to  be  a  good  side-line  for  the  Thornton 
family,"  Kavanagh  remarked,  maliciously.  "  If  you  can 
start  where  your  grandfather  is  leaving  off,  you  ought 
to  be  something  big  over  in  your  country  before  you 
die!" 

73 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  I'm  not  interested  in  politics,  Mr.  Kavanagh,  nor  in 
my  grandfather's  quarrels  with  you." 

"I  am,  though!  Interested  enough  to  advise  you  to 
keep  to  your  own  side  of  that  river!" 

"  I'll  admit  that  you  have  the  right  to  advise  your 
daughter  about  the  friends  she  makes.  But  I  don't  grant 
you  the  privilege  of  insulting  me  before  her  face  and 
eyes  by  putting  wrong  constructions  on  our  friendship." 

"  Meaning  that  you're  going  to  keep  up  this  dilly-dally 
business  whether  I  allow  you  to  or  not?" 

It  was  a  cruel  question  at  that  moment.  The  girl 
was  looking  at  him  with  her  heart  in  her  eyes.  He  had 
understood  her  pledge  of  loyalty  given  a  moment  before. 
Youth  is  not  philosophic.  She  would  misunderstand 
anything  except  loyalty  in  return. 

"  Going  to  court  my  daughter,  are  you,  according  to 
the  Thornton  style  of  grabbing  anything  in  sight  that 
they  want?" 

"Say,  look  here,  Mr.  Kavanagh,"  declared  the  young 
man,  hotly,  "  I'm  not  going  to  answer  any  such  questions. 
But  I'm  going  to  tell  you  something,  and  I'm  going  to 
tell  it  to  you  straight  and  right  here  where  your  daughter 
can  hear  me.  I'm  not  the  kind  that  goes  around  making 
love  to  any  father's  daughter  behind  his  back.  I've 
never  made  love  to  your  daughter.  Why,  man  she's 
only  a  child!  And  don't  you  give  me  any  more  sneers 
about  it.  That's  man  to  man— understand  ?  And  I'm 
not  going  to  let  you  nor  my  grandfather  or  any  one  else 
break  up  the  innocent  friendship  between  my  little  play 
mate  here  and  myself.  Now  I  hope  you'll  take  that  in 
the  way  I  mean  it.  If  you  don't,  it's  your  fault."  He 
had  spoken  to  answer  the  appeal  in  her  eyes. 

He  had  backed  his  horse  away  so  that  he  could  face 
Kavanagh  on  the  steps  of  the  porch.  The  girl  leaped 
down  from  the  rail,  her  face  alight,  and  ran  to  him  and 
patted  his  hand. 

74 


WITH    THE    KAVANAGH    AT    HOME 

"  By  Saint  Mike,  do  you  think  you'll  tell  me  how  to 
run  my  house?"  demanded  Kavanagh.  He  came  down 
the  steps.  "  I'll  build  a  coffin  for  you  and  a  cage  for  her 
before  that!" 

"You  stay  where  you  are,  father!"  She  faced  him 
with  spirit.  "  You  have  insulted  me  worse  than  you've 
insulted  Harlan.  You  needn't  worry  about  my  going 
behind  your  back  to  make  love  to  any  one.  But  you 
shall  not  break  up  the  dearest  friendship  I  ever  had." 

This  was  the  Clare  Kavanagh  who  had  bearded  even 
Thelismer  Thornton  that  day — the  imperious  young 
beauty  that  the  country-side  knew.  Her  father  had 
often  tested  that  spirit  before,  and  had  allowed  her  to 
dominate,  secretly  proud  that  she  was  truly  his  own 
in  violence  of  temper  and  in  determination  to  have  her 
own  way.  But  just  now  he  was  lacking  that  tolerantly 
humorous  mood  which  usually  gave  in  to  her. 

"To  the  devil  with  your  fiddle-de-dee  friendship!" 
he  shouted.  "You're  sixteen,  you  young  Jezebel;  and 
you — you're  old  enough  to  know  better,  Thornton.  I 
know  what  it's  leading  to,  and  it  ain't  going  further. 
I'll  not  stand  here  and  argue  with  you.  But  if  you  come 
meddling  in  my  family  after  what  I've  said,  you'll  get 
hurt,  young  man." 

"That's  right — we  won't  argue  the  question,"  Thorn 
ton  retorted.  "There's  nothing  to  argue.  You  know 
where  I  stand  in  the  matter,  little  girl.  That's  all  there 
is  to  it,  so  far  as  we're  concerned.  I'm  going  now.  I 
think  I'm  ready  for  that  talk  with  my  grandfather." 

He  took  leave  of  her  with  a  frank  handclasp.  Kava 
nagh  glowered,  but  did  not  comment. 

When  Harlan  whirled  his  horse  he  saw  the  conflagra 
tion  on  the  Jo  Quacca  hills. 

He  gasped  something  like  an  oath.  "  There  goes  the 
slash  on  our  operation!"  he  said,  aloud. 

"  Your  grandfather  must  have  got  you  into  politics 

75 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

in  good  shape  by  this  time,"  observed  Kavanagh,  sar 
castically.  "  At  any  rate,  he  seems  to  be  celebrating 
with  a  good  big  bonfire." 

At  that  moment  the  three  of  them  beheld  the  farm 
buildings  burst  into  flame. 

"Offering  up  sacrifices,  too!"  commented  the  satirist. 
"  Seems  to  me,  Thornton,  you  ought  to  be  there.  They'll 
be  calling  for  three  cheers  and  a  speech!" 

In  one  heartsick  moment  Thornton  realized  that  this 
raging  fire  had  something  to  do  with  the  political  affairs 
of  that  day.  He  had  seen  "Whispering"  Urban  Cobb 
at  "The  Barracks"  in  the  forenoon,  and  knew  that  he 
had  led  away  a  crowd  of  woodsmen  for  some  purpose  of 
his  own.  Just  what  a  dangerous  conflagration  on  the 
Jo  Quacca  hills  could  accomplish  in  relation  to  that 
caucus,  Harlan  did  not  stop  to  ponder.  He  could  see 
that  a  fire  was  rioting  over  his  lands,  and  destroying  the 
property  of  others.  His  horse  had  already  begun  to  leap 
for  the  highway,  but  the  girl  cried  after  him  so  beseech 
ingly  that  he  reined  the  animal  back. 

"Just  one  moment,  Harlan!  A  little  instant!  I 
haven't  unsaddled  Zero  yet.  Wait!"  She  whistled, 
and  the  horse  came  cantering.  The  hounds,  seeing  him, 
leaped  and  gave  tongue  understandingly.  "  I'm  going 
with  you,"  she  declared,  swinging  to  her  saddle. 

Her  father  came  down  off  the  steps,  running  at  her. 
"  No,  you're  not,  you  wild  banshee.  What  did  I  just 
tell  you?" 

"  You  told  me  that  children  may  ride  cock-horse — 
and  I'm  not  sixteen  till  to-morrow!"  she  cried,  jumping 
her  horse  just  as  her  father's  clutching  fingers  touched 
his  bridle.  She  was  out  in  the  road  before  Harlan's 
horse  had  picked  up  his  heels.  She  swung  her  little  whip 
above  her  head. 

"Come  on,  Big  Boy!"  she  urged  at  the  top  of  her 
voice,  crying  above  the  clamor  of  the  racing  dogs. 

76 


WITH    THE     KAVANAGH    AT    HOME 

"  We're  playfellows  to  -  day,  and  I  ean't  fall  in  love  till 
to-morrow!"  The  last  words  she  lilted  mockingly, 
flashing  a  look  backward  at  Dennis  Kavanagh. 

The  old  man  did  not  shift  his  attitude,  fingers  curved 
to  clutch,  arms  extended,  until  he  heard  the  tattoo  of 
their  horses'  hoofs  on  the  long  bridge. 

"  Maybe  Brian  Boru  might  have  been  proud  of  her 
for  a  daughter,"  he  muttered,  as  he  trudged  back  up  the 
steps,  "but  I'll  be  dommed  if  I  know  whether  I  am  or 
not!" 


VIII 


THE    MANTLE    OF   THELISMER   THORNTON 

HE  fire  on  the  Jo  Quacca  hills  was  checked 
at  nightfall.  Two  hundred  beaters  and 
trenchers  managed  to  fight  it  back  and 
hold  it  in  leash  to  feed  on  the  slash  of  the 
timber  operation.  But,  like  a  tiger  con 
fined  in  its  cage,  it  had  reached  out 
through  its  bars  and  claimed  victims.  Three  stands  of 
farm  buildings  were  in  ruins. 

Harlan  Thornton,  sooty  and  weary,  left  the  fire-line 
as  soon  as  he  knew  that  the  monster  had  been  subdued. 
He  rode  about  to  reassure  the  owners  that  their  losses 
would  be  made  up  by  himself  and  his  grandfather. 

"Keep  away  from  the  lawyers,"  he  counselled  the 
losers.  "They'll  get  half  the  money  out  of  you  if  you 
hire  them.  We'll  settle  after  appraisal." 

The  men  that  he  talked  to  seemed  sullen  in  spite  of  his 
assurances.  They  seemed  to  be  repressing  taunts  or 
reproaches  merely  in  consideration  of  the  fact  that  he 
was  holding  the  purse-strings.  He  noted  this  demeanor, 
and  feared  to  ask  questions. 

Clare  Kavanagh  rode  with  him;  she  had  not  left  his 
side,  even  when  he  led  his  crews  into  perilous  places  and 
entreated  her  to  keep  back. 

And  they  rode  away  together  down  the  long  stretch 
of  highway  from  the  hills  to  the  village.  Behind  them, 
against  the  dusk,  glowed  the  red,  last  signals  of  the  dy 
ing  fires:  tree-trunks  upraised  like  smouldering  torches, 

78 


MANTLE    OF   THELISMER    THORNTON 

the  timbers  of  the  falling  buildings  tumbling  from  their 
props  and  sending  up  showers  of  sparks.  A  pale  sliver 
of  new  moon  made  the  red  of  the  fires  even  more  baleful, 
and  the  two  who  rode  together  looked  back  and  felt  the 
obsession  of  something  they  had  never  experienced 
before. 

"I  am  unhappy,  Big  Boy,"  sighed  the  girl.  "We 
have  never  come  back  from  our  rides  like  this." 

"  It  has  been  a  wicked  day  for  both  of  us,  child." 

"  And  you  cannot  call  me  child  after  to-day — so  my 
father  says."  Her  voice  was  still  plaintive,  but  there 
was  a  hint  of  the  old  mischief  there.  "  I'll  be  sixteen 
to-morrow — and  I  didn't  know  until  to-day  that  I'd  be 
so  sorry  that  it  is  so.  Ever  since  I  was  ten  I've  been 
wishing  I  could  be  eighteen  without  waiting  for  the  years. 
But  I  don't  know,  now,  Harlan.  It  seemed  as  though 
I'd  be  getting  more  out  of  living.  I  thought  so."  Tears 
were  in  her  voice  now.  "  It  seems  as  though  I'd  grown 
up  all  of  a  sudden;  and  things  aren't  beautiful  and 
happy  and — and  as  they  used  to  be — not  any  more! 
I've  lost  something,  Harlan.  And  if  growing  up  is  losing 
so  much,  I  don't  want  to  grow  up." 

He  listened  indulgently  and  understood  this  protest 
of  the  child.  Their  horses  walked  slowly  side  by  side, 
and  the  tired  hounds  trailed  after  them. 

"The  grown-ups  do  lose  a  lot  of  things  out  of  life, 
little  girl — things  that  mean  a  great  deal  in  childhood. 
But  keep  your  heart  open,  and  other  things  wTill  come." 

"  Perhaps  when  I  get  to  be  twenty-four  years  old  and 
as  big  as  you  are  I  can  talk  that  way,  and  believe  it, 
too.  But  just  now  I'm  only  a  girl  that  doesn't  believe 
she's  grown  up,  even  if  they  do  tell  her  so,  and  tell  her 
she  mustn't  be  a  playmate  any  longer.  And  you  are 
not  to  ride  with  me  any  more,  and  you  are  not  to  come 
to  my  house  nor  may  I  come  to  yours.  That's  what 
they  say.  What  are  we  to  do,  then?" 

79 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

She  cried  her  question  passionately.  He  had  no 
answer  ready.  Platitudes  would  not  do  for  this  child, 
he  reflected,  and  to  lecture  her  then  even  on  the  A  B  C's 
of  the  social  code  would  be  wounding  her  ingenuous 
faith. 

"  If  this  is  the  way  it  all  turns  out,  and  I  can't  have 
your  friendship  any  longer,  what  is  it  that  you're  going 
to  do  or  I'm  going  to  do?"  she  insisted.  "That's  losing 
too  much,  just  because  one  is  grown  up." 

Tenderness  surged  in  his  heart  toward  this  motherless 
girl — tenderness  in  which  there  was  a  new  quality.  But 
he  had  no  answer  for  her  just  then.  He  did  not  under 
stand  his  own  emotions.  He  was  as  unsophisticated  as 
she  in  the  affairs  of  the  heart.  His  man's  life  of  the 
woods  had  kept  him  free  from  women.  His  friendship 
with  this  child,  their  rides,  their  companionship,  had 
been  almost  on  the  plane  of  boy  with  boy;  her  character 
invited  that  kind  of  intimacy. 

And  so  he  wondered  what  to  say;  for  her  demand  had 
been  explicit,  and  she  demanded  candor  in  return. 

At  that  moment  he  welcomed  the  appearance  of  even 
Ivus  Niles.  That  sooty  prophet  of  ill  appeared  around 
a  bend  in  the  road  ahead.  The  twilight  shrouded  him, 
but  there  was  no  mistaking  his  stove-pipe  hat  and  his 
frock-coat.  He  was  leading  his  buck  sheep,  and  the 
hounds  rushed  forward  clamorously.  Niles  stopped  in 
the  middle  of  the  road,  and  let  them  frolic  about  him  and 
his  emblematic  captive. 

"The  dogs  won't  hurt  you,  Niles/'  Harlan  assured 
him,  spurring  forward. 

"  I  ain't  afraid  of  dogs,  I  ain't  afraid  of  wolves,  not 
after  what  I've  been  through  with  the  political  Bengal 
tigers  I've  been  up  against  to-day,"  Niles  assured  him, 
sourly.  "  And  your  grandfather  is  the  old  he  one  of  the 
pack.  You  tell  him — " 

"  You  can  take  your  own  messages  to  my  grandfather, 

80 


MANTLE     OF    THEL1SMER    THORNTON 

Niles."  He  swung  his  horse  to  pass,  the  girl  at  his 
side,  but  the  War  Eagle  threw  up  his  hand  command- 
ingly. 

"  I've  got  a  message  for  you,  yourself,  then,  and  you 
stay  here  and  take  it.  He  stole  our  caucus  for  you  to 
day,  your  grandfather  did— 

"You  don't  mean  to  say  I  was  nominated!" 

"  That's  too  polite  a  word,  Mr.  Harlan  Thornton.  I 
gave  you  the  right  one  the  first  time.  He  stampeded 
our  caucus  by  having  that  fire  set  on  the  Jo  Quacca  hills. 
Three  sets  of  farm  buildings  offered  up  to  the  gods  of 
rotten  politics!  That's  a  nice  kind  of  sacrifice,  Thorn 
ton's  grandson!  It  goes  well  with  the  crowd  you're  in 
with.  It  will  smell  well  in  the  nostrils  of  the  people 
of  this  State.  You  ought  to  be  proud  of  being  made  a 
lawmaker  in  that  way." 

It  was  not  reproach — it  was  insult,  sneered  in  the 
agitator's  bitterest  tone. 

"  The  property  of  three  poor  toilers  of  the  soil  laid  flat 
in  ashes,  a  town  terrified  by  danger  rushing  down 
through  the  heavens  like  the  flight  of  the  war  eagle," 
shouted  Niles,  declaiming  after  his  accustomed  manner, 
"  and  all  to  put  you  into  a  seat  in  the  State  House,  where 
you  can  keep  stealing  the  few  things  that  your  grand 
father  ain't  had  time  or  strength  to  steal!  You've  had 
your  bonfire  and  your  celebration — now  go  down  and 
hoist  the  Star-Spangled  Banner  over  'The  Barracks '- 
but  you'd  better  hoist  it  Union  down!" 

Harlan  dropped  off  his  horse  and  strode  to  Niles.  He 
seized  him  by  the  shoulder  and  shook  him  roughly,  for 
the  man  had  begun  his  oratory  once  more. 

"Enough  of  that,  Niles!  Was  I  chosen  in  the  caucus 
to-day?  I  want  yes  or  no." 

"  Yes — and  after  three-quarters  of  the  voters  had  been 
stampeded  to  fight  that  fire  that  was  sweeping  down  on 
their  property!  And  you — 

81 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Harlan  pushed  him  to  one  side,  leaped  upon  his  horse, 
and  rode  away.  The  girl  jumped  her  roan  to  his  side. 

"It's  wicked,  Harlan,"  she  gasped,  "wicked!  I  heard 
him!  What  are  you  going  to  do?" 

That  was  another  of  her  questions  that  he  found  it 
hard  to  answer.  "  I'm  going  to  find  my  grandfather, 
Clare,  and  I'm  going  in  a  great  hurry.  Come,  I  can't 
talk  now,  little  girl!" 

They  galloped  down  the  long  hill  to  the  bridge,  their 
horses  neck  and  neck. 

"  The  last  ride  as  playmates!"  she  cried,  as  they  started. 
Her  voice  broke,  pathetically.  He  did  not  reply.  He 
was  too  furiously  angry  to  trust  himself  in  conversation 
at  that  moment,  and  he  rode  like  a  madman,  knowing 
that  she  could  keep  pace  with  him. 

They  drew  rein  at  the  end  of  the  bridge. 

"  It's  only  a  bit  of  a  run  for  you  now,  little  girl.  I'll 
keep  on  home." 

She  put  her  hand  out  to  him  and  held  him  for  a 
moment. 

"  I'm  afraid  you'll  go  away  to  be  a  big  man,  after  all, 
Harlan,"  she  said,  dolefully. 

"  Go  in  this  way  ?  What  are  you  talking  about, 
child  ?"  he  demanded,  choking,  his  fury  getting  possession 
of  him.  "I've  been  disgraced — abused.  I'll — but  I 
mustn't  talk  to  you  now — the  wicked  words  might  slip 
out." 

But  she  would  not  loose  his  hand  just  then. 

"  I  sent  for  you  to  come  home  because  I  heard  father 
say  that  politics  is  wicked  business.  But  I  didn't  know 
it  was  as  wicked  as  this.  It's  no  wonder  they  can't  get 
the  good  men  like  you  to  go  into  it.  If  they  could  it 
would  be  better,  wouldn't  it?" 

Even  in  his  distress  it  occurred  to  him  that  out  of  the 
mouth  of  this  child  was  proceeding  quaint  and  un 
conscious  wisdom. 

82 


MANTLE    OF    THELISMER    THORNTON 

"  I  wish  it  wasn't  wicked,"  she  went  on,  wistfully. 
"I've  been  thinking  as  I  rode  along  that  I've  been  sel 
fish.  I'd  like  to  see  you  a  big  man  like  some  of  those 
I've  read  about.  It  was  selfish  of  me  to  say  I  didn't  want 
you  to  get  out  of  the  woods  and  be  a  big  man." 

"I  couldn't  be  one,"  he  protested. 

"  Even  a  foolish  little  girl  up  here  in  the  woods  has  got 
faith  that  you  can — and  men  who  are  really  big  don't 
forget  their  old  friends.  I  don't  want  you  mixed  up  in 
any  wicked  thing,  Harlan,  but  I  wouldn't  want  you  to 
go  away  from  me  thinking  I  was  selfish  and  jealous. 
That  isn't  the  right  kind  of  a  friend  for  any  one  to  have. 
I've  been  thinking  it  over." 

He  stared  at  her  through  the  dusk.  This  sudden 
flash  of  worldly  wisdom,  this  unselfish  loyalty  in  one  so 
young,  rather  startled  him. 

"That's  real  grown-up  talk,  child,"  he  blurted. 

"Is  it?"  The  wan  little  flicker  of  a  smile  that  she 
mustered  brought  tears  to  his  eyes.  "Maybe 'it's  be 
cause  I'll  be  sixteen  to-morrow.  Good-night,  Big  Boy!" 
This  new,  womanly  seriousness  was  full  of  infinite 
pathos.  She  had  not  released  his  hand.  She  bent 
forward  suddenly,  leaning  from  her  saddle,  and  kissed  his 
cheek.  "And  good-bye,  my  playmate!"  she  whispered. 
While  his  fingers  still  throbbed  with  the  last  pressure 
of  her  hand,  the  black  mouth  of  the  big  bridge  swallowed 
her.  He  listened  to  the  ringing  hoof-beats  of  her  horse 
till  sudden  silence  told  him  she  had  reached  the  soft  soil 
on  the  other  shore. 

He  did  not  gallop  to  meet  his  grandfather.  He 
walked  his  horse  for  the  long  mile  past  the  scattered 
houses  of  the  village  till  he  came  to  "The  Barracks." 

When  he  was  still  some  distance  away  he  saw  in  the 
gloom  of  the  porch  the  red  coal  of  the  Duke's  cigar. 
Even  then  he  did  not  rush  forward  to  protest  and 
denounce. 

7  83 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

He  slipped  off  his  horse,  and  led  him  toward  the  porch. 
But  before  he  could  speak  his  grandfather  hailed  him. 

"  Run  in  to  your  supper,  bub.  The  boys  are  holding 
it  hot  for  you.  Luke  and  I  were  too  hungry  to  wait." 

"I  can't  eat  now — not  with  what's  on  my  mind." 

"Oh,  bub — bub!  Run  along  with  you!  There's 
plenty  of  time  for  talk.  I'll  be  here  when  you  come 
out.  Get  something  to  eat,  now!  That's  a  good  boy!" 

Somehow  he  couldn't  begin  the  attack  just  then. 
That  tone  was  too  affectionate,  too  matter-of-fact.  And 
even  then  his  hand  seemed  to  feel  the  pressure  of  the 
little  fingers  that  had  released  him  at  the  bridge,  and  the 
choking  feeling  was  still  in  his  throat. 

He  gave  his  horse  over  to  the  hostler,  and  went  into 
the  house. 

The  lamp  in  the  old  mess-room  thrust  its  beams  only 
a  little  way  into  the  gloom.  It  shone  over  the  table 
and  left  the  corners  dark.  The  cookee  brought  the  food 
from  the  kitchen,  poured  the  tea,  and  then  wiped  his 
hands  briskly  on  his  canvas  apron. 

"I  want  to  shake  with  you,  Mr.  Harlan!"  He  put 
out  his  hand,  so  frankly  confident  that  he  was  doing  the 
proper  thing  that  the  young  man  grasped  it.  "It  was 
done  to  'em  good  and  proper.  They  tried  to  pull  too  hot 
a  kittle  out  of  the  bean-hole  that  time — sure  they  did ! 
I  congratulate  you!  I  knowed  you'd  get  into  politics 
some  day." 

Harlan  pulled  his  hand  away,  and  began  to  eat. 

"Served  up  hot  to  'em — that  mess  was,"  chuckled  the 
cookee,  on  the  easy  terms  of  the  familiar  in  the  household. 
"Nothing  like  a  rousin'  fire  if  you're  going  to  make  the 
political  pot  bile  in  good  shape," 

He  chuckled  significantly. 

The  man  pushed  the  food  nearer,  for  Harlan  did  not 
seem  to  be  taking  much  interest  in  his  supper. 

"I  suppose  you'll  be  boardin'  at  Mr.  Presson's  hotel 

84 


MANTLE  OF  THELISMER  THORNTON 

when  you  get  down  to  the  legislature.  I  had  a  meal 
there  once.  They  certainly  do  put  it  up  fine.  Say,  Mr. 
Harlan,  what  do  you  say?  Can't  you  use  your  pull,  and 
get  me  a  job  as  waiter  or  something  down  there  for  the 
session?  Excuse  me  for  gettin'  at  it  so  quick,  but  I 
thought  I'd  hop  in  ahead  of  the  rush — they'll  all  be  after 
you  for  something,  now  that  you're  nominated." 

The  young  man  could  not  discuss  with  this  cheerful 
suppliant  his  indignant  resolve  not  to  be  a  legislator. 

"You'll  have  to  stay  home  here  and  look  after  Grand 
father  Thornton,  Bob,"  he  hedged. 

"Oh,  thunder!  He's  goin'  right  down  to  spend  the 
winter  with  you.  Was  tellin'  Mr.  Presson  so  when  they 
et  just  now.  Said  you'd  be  needin'  a  steerin'  committee 
of  just  his  bigness!" 

Harlan  got  up  and  kicked  his  chair  from  under  him. 
It  went  over  with  a  clatter.  To  his  infinite  relief  he  had 
suddenly  recovered  some  of  that  wrathful  determination 
that  Ivus  Niles's  sneers  had  given  him  earlier  in  the 
evening. 

Thelismer  Thornton  heard  him  coming. 

"Pretty  heavy  on  his  heels,  the  boy  is!"  he  observed 
to  the  State  chairman.  "He's  been  licking  his  dander 
around  in  a  circle  till  he's  got  it  rearing." 

The  young  man  halted,  erect  before  his  grandfather, 
but  again  the  old  man  got  in  the  first  word. 

"I'm  going  to  give  you  all  the  time  to  talk  in  you 
want,  bub.  I  was  a  little  short  with  you  to-day,  when 
I  was  stirred  up,  but  no  more  of  that!  Say  all  you  want 
to.  And  I'm  going  to  give  you  a  little  advice  about 
starting  in.  Now — now — now!  Hold  on.  I  know  just 
how  you  feel.  I  don't  blame  you  for  feeling  that  way. 
But  it  had  to  be  done  just  as  I  did  it — all  of  it!  Now 
you  ought  to  start  in  with  me  just  the  way  Sol  Lurchin 
was  advised  to  when  he  wanted  to  tackle  Cola  Jordan, 
who  had  done  him  on  a  horse-trade.  Sol  went  to  old 

85 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Squire  Bain,  and  says  he  to  the  Squire,  'I  want  to  stay 
inside  the  law  in  this.  I  don't  want  him  to  get  no  legal 
hold  on  me.  But  I  want  to  talk  to  him.  Now,  what  '11 
I  say  so  's  to  give  him  what's  comin'  and  still  be  legal?' 
'Well,'  says  old  Squire,  rubbing  his  hands  together, 
'  you've  got  to  start  easy,  you  know.  You  want  to  start 
easy,  so  's  to  make  the  climax  worth  something.  Now, 
let's  see!  Well,  suppose  you  walk  up  to  him  and  say, 
"You  spawn  of  the  pike-eyed  sneak  that  Herod  hired 
to  kill  babies,  you  low-down,  contemptible  son  of  a  body- 
snatcher,  you  was  born  a  murderer,  but  lacked  the  courage 
and  became  a  horse-thief!"  There,  Sol,  start  in  easy 
like  that  and  gradually  work  up  to  a  climax,  and  you'll 
have  him  going — and  all  inside  the  law.  Two  dollars, 
please!' " 

The  Duke  leaned  back  in  his  chair  and  nested  his  head 
in  his  big  hands.  He  gazed  up  meekly  at  his  chafing 
grandson. 

"Start  in  easy,  bub,  like  that,  and  work  up  to  your 
climax.  I  know  just  how  you  feel!" 

But  just  at  that  moment  the  chairman  of  the  State 
Committee  was  laughing  too  loudly  for  any  dignified 
protest  to  be  heard. 

"For  some  reason,  grandfather,  you  seem  all  at  once 
to  have  taken  me  as  a  subject  for  a  practical  joke,"  said 
the  young  man,  stiffly.  The  interlude  had  taken  the 
sharp  edge  off  his  indignation,  but  he  was  still  bitter. 
"  It  may  seem  a  joke  to  you.  To  me  it  seems  insult  and 
persecution.  I  have  attended  to  business,  I've  worked 
hard  and  made  money  for  both  of  us.  To-day  you've 
held  me  up  before  this  section  to  be  laughed  at  by  some 
and  hated  by  the  rest.  I'm  glad  I've  had  half  an  hour 
to  think  it  over  since  I  first  heard  about  what  happened 
in  that  caucus.  I  won't  say  the  things  to  you  I  intended 
to  say.  I'll  simply  say  this:  I'm  going  to  write  a  letter 
declining  this  nomination.  I'm  going  to  publish  that 

86 


MANTLE  OF  THELISMER  THORNTON 

letter.  And  I'm  going  to  say  in  that  letter  that  I  will 
not  take  any  office  that  isn't  come  at  honestly." 

"Harlan,  sit  down."  His  feet  had  been  in  one  of 
the  porch  chairs.  He  pushed  it  toward  his  grandson. 
The  young  man  sat  down. 

"You  don't  know  much  about  the  practical  end  of 
politics,  do  you?" 

"I  do  not." 

"You'll  allow  that  I  do?" 

"You  seem  to,  if  that's  what  you  call  this  sort  of 
business  that  has  been  going  on  here  to-day." 

"Bub,  look  at  the  thing  from  my  standpoint  for  just 
one  moment.  I'll  consider  it  from  yours,  too — you 
needn't  worry.  I  want  you  to  be  something  in  this 
world  besides  a  lumber-jack.  You've  got  the  right 
stuff  in  you.  I  tried  argument  with  you.  You'll 
have  to  own  up  that  I  did.  It  didn't  work  —  now, 
did  it?" 

"  I  told  you  I  didn't  want  to  get  into  politics.  I  don't 
want  to  get  in.  I  don't  like  the  company." 

"Politics  is  all  right,  Harlan,  when  the  right  men  are 
in.  You  are  the  kind  the  people  are  calling  for  these 
days.  You're  clean,  straight,  open-minded,  and — 

"Clean  and  straight!  And  the  people  are  calling  for 
me!"  The  young  man  broke  in  wrathfully.  "You 
say  that  to  me  after  the  sort  of  a  caucus  you  sprung 
to-day?  If  that's  what  you  consider  a  call  from  the 
people,  I  don't  want  to  be  called  that  way." 

"It  was  a  call,  but  it  had  to  be  shaded  by  politics  a 
little,"  returned  the  Duke,  serenely. 

"If  a  good  man  is  going  into  politics,  he  can  go  in 
square." 

"Sometimes.  But  not  when  the  opposition  is  out  to 
do  him  with  every  dirty  trick  that's  laid  down  in  the 
back  of  the  political  almanac." 

"If  you  wanted  to  start  me,  and  start  me  fair  and 

87 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

right,  why  didn't  you  let  my  name  go  before  that  caucus 
to-day,  and  then  hold  off  your  hands?" 

"Because  if  I  had  you'd  have  stood  about  the  same 
chance  as  a  v/orsted  dog  chasing  an  asbestos  cat  through 
hell.  Look  here,  bub,  I  wish  I  had  the  time;  I'd  like 
to  tell  you  how  most  of  the  good  men  I  know  got  their 
start  in  politics.  You  can  be  a  statesman  after  you've 
got  your  head  up  where  the  sun  can  shine  on  it,  but 
you've  got  to  be  touching  ground  to  keep  your  head  up. 
And  if  you're  touching  ground  in  politics,  you'll  find  that 
your  shoes  are  muddy — and  you  can't  help  it." 

The  grandson  did  not  reply.  Thornton  relighted  his 
cigar.  The  flare  of  the  match  showed  disgust  and 
stubbornness  in  the  features  opposite. 

"You  know  Enoch  Dudley  as  well  as  I  do,  Harlan. 
That's  the  man  they  put  up.  And  a  man  that  has  let 
two  of  his  sons  be  bound  out  and  has  turned  back  his  wife 
for  her  own  people  to  support  can't  hide  behind  any 
white  necktie,  so  far  's  I'm  concerned.  Luke  and  I 
know  where  the  money  came  from  that  they've  been 
putting  in  here.  We  know  the  men  behind,  and  what 
their  object  is.  We  know  what  they  are  trying  to  do  in 
the  next  legislature.  You'll  see  it  all  for  yourself  when 
the  time  comes,  Harlan.  You'll  be  up  against  them. 
You  understand  men.  I'll  only  be  wasting  time  in 
telling  you  what  you'll  see  for  yourself.  Do  you  want 
to  see  a  man  like  Enoch  Dudley  representing  this  dis 
trict?  If  you  do,  go  ahead  and  write  that  letter!" 

"You'll  not  do  that,  Harlan,"  stated  the  chairman, 
with  decision.  "As  it  stands  now,  whatever  they  say 
about  this  caucus  will  be  simply  the  whinings  of  a  licked 
opposition.  We  know  how  to  handle  that  kind  of  talk. 
There  isn't  a  man  on  our  side,  from  Sylvester  to  Urban 
Cobb,  who  will  open  his  mouth,  even  if  the  thumb-screws 
are  put  to  him.  Harlan,  are  you  the  kind  of  a  fellow 
that  would  hold  your  grandfather  up  before  the  people 

88 


MANTLE    OF    THELISMER    THORNTON 

of  this  State  in  any  such  light  ?  Of  course  you  are 
not!" 

"No,  I  don't  suppose  I  am,"  acknowledged  the  young 
man.  "But  I  can  decline  to  run." 

The  State  chairman  pulled  his  chair  close,  and  tapped 
emphasis  on  the  candidate's  knee. 

"No,  you  can't.  It  would  give  'em  the  one  fact  that 
they  need  for  a  foundation  to  build  their  case  on.  What 
you've  got  to  do,  Harlan,  is  accept  this  nomination,  just 
as  it  is  handed  to  you.  Stand  up  and  fight  for  your 
election  like  a  man.  The  thing  may  look  rank  to  you. 
Politics  usually  looks  rank  to  a  beginner,  who  has  to  get 
down  and  fight  on  the  level  of  the  other  fellow.  But 
you'll  understand  things  better  after  you  get  along  a 
little  further.  If  you  back  out  now  you're  leaving  your 
grandfather  open  to  attack.  Those  dogs  can  only  bark, 
now.  If  you  let  'em  past  you  they'll  have  a  chance  to 
set  their  teeth  in.  Harlan,  you  think  too  much  of  your 
grandfather  to  do  such  a  thing  as  that,  don't  you?" 

The  three  of  them  sat  in  silence  for  a  while. 

"I  hate  to  say  anything  just  now,  my  boy,"  said  the 
old  man,  at  last.  He  leaned  forward,  his  elbows  on  the 
arms  of  his  chair.  "Luke  has  put  it  to  you  a  little 
stronger  than  I  should  have  done.  I  don't  want  to  beg 
you  or  coax  you.  If  you  think  it's  too  much  of  a  sacri 
fice  to  stand  by  me — if  you  want  to  quit,  and  can't  look 
at  it  in  any  other  way,  go  ahead.  I  can  fight  it  out 
alone.  I've  had  a  good  many  lone  fights.  I'm  good  for 
one  more.  But  before  you  say  what  you're  going  to 
say,  I've  got  a  last  word  to  drop  in.  You  know  how 
I've  dealt  with  men  in  business  matters,  my  boy/' 

"  But  why  can't  you  do  the  same  in  politics  ?"  demand 
ed  his  grandson,  bitterly. 

"It's  just  on  that  point  that  I  want  to  put  you  right, 
I  know  pretty  well  why  you  haven't  hankered  to  get 
into  politics,  Harlan.  You've  heard  some  of  the  sneers, 

89 


slurs,  and  the  gossip.  You  didn't  know  much  about  it, 
but  you  sort  of  felt  ashamed  of  me  on  account  of  politics. 
Hold  on!  I  know.  It  has  been  a  kind  of  shame  and 
pity  mixed,  like  one  feels  for  a  drunkard  in  the  family. 
This  caucus  seemed  to  you  like  a  spree — and  you  got 
mixed  into  it,  and  you're  angry  with  me.  Listen:  there 
are  people  in  this  world  who  won't  allow  that  a  man  is 
honest  in  politics  unless  he  goes  about  hunting  for  all 
the  measures  that  might  help  him  personally  and  kills 
'em.  And  the  same  yellow-skins  that  howl  because  he 
doesn't  do  that  would  turn  around  and  cuss  him  for 
seventeen  kinds  of  a  fool  if  he  did,  and  ruined  himself  by 
doing  it.  I  haven't  stolen,  boy.  I've  given  my  time 
and  my  energies  to  developing  this  State.  I've  seen  it 
prosper  and  grow  big.  And  I've  shared  in  the  prosperity 
by  seeing  that  my  own  interests  got  their  rights  along 
with  the  rest.  I'm  where  I  can  look  back.  And  I  can't 
see  where  the  reputation  of  being  a  saint  who  cut  off 
his  own  fingers  for  a  sacrifice  would  help  me  get  en 
dorsers  at  the  bank  or  find  friends  I  could  borrow 
money  from.  Harlan,  boy,  I'm  an  old  man.  I  can't  live 
much  longer.  A  little  reputation  of  some  kind  or  an 
other  will  live  after  me.  I  want  you  to  know  the  right 
of  it.  And  the  only  way  for  you  to  find  out  is  to  be 
what  I  have  been.  Hearing  about  it  won't  inform  you. 
I  want  you  to  meet  the  men  and  play  the  game.  I  want 
you  to  realize  that  when  I  say  I've  done  the  best  I  could, 
I'm  telling  you  the  truth.  Harlan,  stand  up  here  with 
me.  Give  me  your  hand.  Say  that  you'll  stand  by  the 
old  man  in  this  one  thing — the  biggest  he  ever  has  asked 
of  you.  It's  a  matter  between  the  Thorntons,  boy!" 

There  had  been  an  appeal  in  his  voice  that  was  near 
wistfulness.  And  while  he  talked  the  wisdom  that  had 
come  from  the  mouth  of  a  child  that  evening  threaded 
its  own  quaint  appeal  into  the  argument  of  the  grand 
father.  Resentment  and  obstinacy,  if  they  be  tempered 

90 


MANTLE    OF   THELISMER    THORNTON 

with  youth,  cannot  fight  long  against  affection  and  the 
ties  of  blood. 

Harlan  took  his  grandfather's  hand. 

"That's  my  boy!"  cried  the  Duke,  heartily,  and  he 
slipped  his  arm  about  his  grandson's  shoulders  and  patted 
him. 

"It  straightens  things  out  a  good  deal,"  observed 
Presson,  with  the  practicality  of  the  politician.  "  Harlan, 
you're  going  to  find  a  winter  at  the  State  House  worth 
while.  With  your  grandfather  to  set  you  going  right 
and  post  you  up,  you  ought  to  make  good." 

"I'd  like  to  have  a  little  light  on  one  point,"  remarked 
the  young  man,  curtly.  He  felt  again  the  irritating 
prick  of  resentment.  "What  am  I  to  be  down  to  that 
legislature — myself,  or  Thelismer  Thornton's  grand 
son  ?" 

"You  can't  afford  to  throw  good  advice  over  your 
shoulder,"  protested  the  chairman — "not  when  it  comes 
from  a  man  that's  had  fifty  years  of  experience." 

"Hold  on,  Luke,  don't  set  the  boy  off  on  the  wrong 
track.  I  know  how  he  feels.  Harlan,  you're  going 
down  there  just  as  I  said  you're  going — with  an  open 
mind,  clean  hands,  good,  straight  American  spirit  to 
do  right  just  so  far  as  a  man  in  politics  can  do  right! 
I  want  you  to  see  for  yourself.  If  you  want  my  help  in 
anything  you  shall  have  it.  But  it  '11  be  Gramp  advising 
his  boy — not  a  boss,  hectoring.  Believe  that!" 

"You  needn't  be  afraid  of  the  city  fellows,"  advised 
Presson. 

Harlan  stood  up  before  them,  earnest,  intense,  de 
termined. 

"A  fellow  placed  as  I  have  been  has  this  much  ad 
vantage  over  city  chaps,  and  I'm  going  to  take  courage 
from  it,"  he  said:  "I've  had  a  chance  to  read.  There 
are  long  evenings  in  the  woods,  and  I  haven't  been  able 
or  obliged  to  kill  time  at  clubs  and  parties.  I  have  read, 

91 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Mr.  Presson.  I  don't  know  how  much  good  it  has  done 
me.  That  remains  to  be  found  out.  Perhaps  a  fellow 
who  reads  and  hasn't  real  experience  gets  a  wrong  view 
point.  But  this  much  I  do  believe :  a  man  can  be  honest, 
himself,  in  politics,  and  can  find  enough  honest  men  to 
stand  with  him.  I'm  going  to  try,  at  any  rate.  For 
if  there's  any  dependence  to  be  put  in  what  I  read  there's 
something  serious  the  matter  in  public  affairs." 

"  Going  to  start  a  reform  party,  young  man  ?"  chuckled 
the  State  chairman.  He  had  seen  and  tested  youthful 
ideals  before  in  his  political  experience. 

"I  didn't  mean  it  that  way.  I  wasn't  talking  about 
myself.  I'll  be  only  a  little  spoke  in  the  wheel,  sir. 
But  I  mean  to  say  that  when  I  get  to  the  State  House 
I'm  going  to  hunt  up  the  men  who  believe  in  a  square 
deal,  and  I'm  going  to  train  with  'em."  He  spoke  a  bit 
defiantly.  It  was  youth  declaring  itself.  It  was  a  spark 
from  the  fire  that  Ivus  Niles  had  kindled  by  his  sneers. 

"Boy,"  said  the  old  man,  cheerfully,  "you're  prancing 
just  a  bit  now.  But  you  needn't  be  afraid  of  me,  be 
cause  I  said  I'd  help  you.  The  first  thing  I'll  do  will  be 
to  take  you  around  and  introduce  you  to  the  men  down 
in  the  legislature  who  are  proposing  to  reform  the  State. 
So  you  see  I  mean  right!" 

The  State  chairman  seemed  much  amused.  He 
chuckled. 

The  Duke  walked  to  the  end  of  the  porch  and  gazed 
up  at  the  Jo  Quacca  hills,  where  the  dim,  red  glow  still 
shone  against  the  sky. 

"So  it  took  down  three  stands  of  buildings,  did  it, 
Harlan?"  he  called.  "Did  you  tell  the  boys  we'd  settle 
promptly,  and  for  them  to  keep  away  from  the  lawyers  ?" 

"I  arranged  it  the  best  I  could  and  got  their  promise. 
But  they  seem  to  know  the  fire  was  set  on  purpose,  and 
are  pretty  gruff  about  it." 

"Of  course  the  fire  was  set  on  purpose — and  I  have  a 

92 


MANTLE  OF  THELISMER  THORNTON 

right  to  clear  my  own  land  when  I  want  to.  But  I 
know  how  to  settle,  bub,  so  as  to  turn  their  vinegar  to 
cream.  For  when  I  square  a  political  debt,  whether  it's 
pay  or  collect,  there's  no  scaling  down!  Full  value — 
and  then  a  little  over!" 

He  came  back  and  as  he  passed  he  tweaked  Harlan's 
ear. 

"It's  been  a  hard  day,  boy!  Come  on,  let's  all  three 
go  to  bed." 


CHAPTER  IX 


IN    THE    CENTRE    OF    THE    BIG    STATE    WEB 

HAIRMAN  PRESSON,  going  his  way 
next  morning,  had  to  confess  to  himself 
that  he  did  not  have  much  to  do  with 
the  workings  of  the  Fort  Canibas  caucus. 
But  it  was  worth  while  to  see  it.  It 
revealed  the  character  of  the  opposition 
throughout  the  State.  And  he  did  a  notable  job  in  the 
publicity  line  immediately.  That  was  his  opportunity 
of  "rallying  to  the  flag."  The  Duke  had  got  his  blow 
in  first;  the  chairman  of  the  State  Committee  got  his 
news  in  first  —  for  the  State  machine  controlled  the 
principal  newspapers. 

First  news,  put  right,  wins.  The  caucus  in  Fort 
Canibas  exposed  the  methods  of  "so-called  reformers" 
— as  the  report  of  it  was  set  forth  in  print.  And  that 
news  was  a  tocsin  for  town  committee-men  who  had 
been  dozing. 

Thelismer  Thornton,  House  leader,  party  boss,  knight 
of  the  old  regime,  and  representative  of  all  that  the 
reformers  had  been  inveighing  against,  still  controlled 
his  district.  That  fact  was  impressed  upon  all.  And 
the  more  vociferous  the  resulting  complaints  of  the  op 
position,  the  more  apparent  it  became  that  it  was  no 
mere  skirmish  party  that  had  been  sent  out  against  him ; 
he  had  whipped  the  generals  themselves.  His  methods 
were  mentioned  discreetly;  his  results  were  made  known 
to  all  men. 

94 


IN    CENTRE    OF    THE    BIG    STATE    WEB 

The  fact  that  it  was  his  grandson  who  had  been 
nominated  was  not  emphasized  as  an  item  of  general 
knowledge.  That  "  Thornton  had  been  nominated  "  was. 
It  was  the  essential  point. 

It  was  accepted  as  a  tip  by  the  many  who  were  waiting 
and  wondering  just  what  this  reform  movement  would 
accomplish  in  actual  results — and  that  means  ability  to 
own  and  distribute  plums.  It  shifted  the  complexion 
of  many  caucuses,  or  rather  fixed  that  complexion, 
without  any  one  being  the  wiser;  for  the  managers  of 
districts  had  been  waiting  for  tips  without  saying  any 
thing  in  regard  to  their  uncertainty.  That's  an  essential 
in  practical  politics — being  able  to  wait  without  letting 
any  one  know  of  the  waiting.  It  gives  a  man  his  chance 
to  cheer  with  the  winner  and  declare  himself  an  "orig 
inal."  The  convert  is  never  half  as  precious  in  politics 
as  an  "original."  It  is  in  heaven  that  the  joy  over  the 
sinner  who  repenteth  is  comforting  and  extreme.  In 
politics  the  first  men  on  the  band-wagon  get  the  hand 
and  what's  in  it. 

And  yet,  as  the  tide  of  caucuses  swelled  and  reports  of 
results  flowed  into  State  headquarters,  Chairman  Presson 
and  his  lieutenants  found  themselves  unable  to  mark 
men  with  the  old  certitude  of  touch.  There  was  a  queer 
kind  of  slipperiness  everywhere.  It  was  evident  that 
the  Canibas  result  had  stiffened  backbones  in  many 
quarters,  but  more  new  men  than  usual  were  coming 
forward  with  nominations  in  their  fists.  Many  of  these 
men  were  not  telling  any  one  how  they  felt  on  the  big 
questions  that  were  agitating  the  State.  Some  an 
nounced  themselves  with  the  usual  grandiloquent  gen 
eralities.  It  is  easy  enough  to  say  that  one  believes  in 
reform  and  good  citizenship,  for  one  can  construe  that 
later  to  suit  circumstances. 

The  reformers  were  making  a  great  deal  of  noise, 
mostly  threats.  They  were  passing  to  candidates  spe- 

95 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

cific  questions  as  to  their  stand  on  the  larger  issues. 
Many  candidates  who  had  subscribed  and  declared  them 
selves  dodged  up  to  headquarters  on  the  sly  and  assured 
the  State  chairman  that  they  had  pledged  their  positions 
because  it  seemed  to  be  a  reform  year,  and  they  had  to 
do  something  to  shut  up  the  yawp  of  the  reformers. 
When  they  privately  assured  Presson  that  they  would 
be  found  on  the  right  side  just  the  same  after  election, 
he  took  heart  for  a  moment,  and  then  was  downcast 
after  they  were  gone;  it  was  tabulating  liars — an  uncer 
tain  job.  Presson  listened  and  took  what  courage  he 
could,  but  the  asterisks  in  his  lists  confessed  his  doubts. 

"There's  a  line  of  stars  down  those  lists  that  would 
puzzle  the  man  who  invented  political  astronomy,"  he 
told  his  intimates.  "  But  I  don't  dare  to  go  looking 
for  the  trouble  right  now.  It  '11  be  like  a  man  looking 
for  measles  in  his  family  of  thirteen;  it  '11  break  out  if 
it's  there — he  won't  have  to  hunt  for  it." 

The  Republican  State  Convention  was  called  for  late 
June.  The  party  managers  believed  that  it  would 
clarify  the  situation  somewhat;  "it  would  afford  an 
opportunity  for  conference  and  free  debate  on  the  big 
questions  where  division  of  opinion  existed,"  so  the 
party  organs  assured  their  readers  day  by  day.  Chair 
man  Presson  asked  them  to  drum  this  idea  into  the 
heads  of  the  people. 

But  what  he  told  himself  and  the  secret  council  was 
that  there  needed  to  be  a  round-up  where  some  of  the 
wild  steers  could  be  thrown  and  branded  before  they 
should  succeed  in  stampeding  the  main  herd.  It -was 
a  situation  that  called  for  one  of  the  good,  old-fashioned 
"nights  before."  For  a  practical  politician  knows  that 
speeches  and  band  music  do  not  make  a  convention; 
they  merely  ratify  the  real  convention;  the  real  con 
vention  is  held  "the  night  before,"  behind  closed  doors 
at  the  headquarters  hotel. 

96 


IN    CENTRE    OF    THE    BIG    STATE    WEB 

There  were  two  candidates  for  the  gubernatorial 
nomination.  The  natural  legatee  of  the  old  regime  in 
his  party  was  in  line,  of  course.  He  had  been  in  line 
for  ten  years,  as  his  predecessors  had  waited  before  him. 
He  had  served  apprenticeship  after  the  usual  fashion: 
had  given  his  money  and  his  time ;  he  had  won  the  valu 
able  title  which  only  he  who  has  suffered  and  has  been 
bled  can  win,  that  of  "the  logical  candidate." 

But  that  seemed  not  the  halcyon  year  for  "  the  logical 
candidate." 

The  inevitable  had  happened  in  the  matter  of  political 
succession.  There  had  been  too  long  a  line  of  successors. 
The  machine  had  become  too  close  a  corporation.  A 
machine,  over-long  in  powder,  by  the  approved  process 
of  making  itself  strong  makes  itself  weak.  It  must  pass 
around  the  offices.  When  it  picks  the  best  men  it  makes 
enemies  of  all  those  it  disappoints.  That  includes 
principals  and  followers.  For  a  time  these  "  best  men  " 
have  enough  of  a  personal  following  to  repel  boarders. 
But  party  "best  men"  must  make  enemies  in  fortifying 
themselves  and  their  friends. 

Every  time  a  matter  is  decided  between  factions,  or  a 
political  seeker  wins  a  subordinate  job,  a  rival  and  his 
friends  are  sent  away  to  sulk.  And  so  at  last,  in  the 
process  of  making  the  fortress  impregnable,  the  big  wall 
falls  and  "the  unders"  come  into  the  citadel. 

Chairman  Presson  would  not  allow  that  the  situation 
in  that  year  of  reform  unrest  was  as  bad  as  the  "  unders" 
seemed  to  think.  But  he  was  worried  because  he  was 
finding  all  men  liars.  And  when  men  are  lying  and 
marking  time  in  politics  and  glancing  over  their  shoulders, 
look  out  for  the  stampede! 

In  a  stampede  "a  logical  candidate"  is  the  first  one 
to  be  trampled  on.  This  one  was  threatened  in  earnest. 

His  opponent  in  his  own  party  was  Protest  walking 
on  two  legs  and  thundering  anathema  through  a  mat  of 

97 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

mustaches  that  made  him  a  marked  figure  in  any  throng. 
His  enemies  called  him  "Fog-horn"  Spinney;  his  ad 
mirers  considered  him  a  silver-tongued  orator.  As  a 
professional  organizer  of  leagues,  clubs,  orders,  and 
societies  he  knew  by  their  first  names  men  enough  to 
elect  him  if  he  could  be  nominated.  And  Arba  Spinney's 
methods  may  be  known  from  the  fact  that  once  he  got 
enough  votes  to  make  him  a  State  Senator  by  asking 
his  auditors  at  each  rally  to  feel  of  the  lumps  in  the 
corners  of  their  ready-made  vests.  A  man  who  is 
fingering  the  sheddings  of  shoddy  feels  like  voting  for 
the  candidate  who  declares  that  he  will  make  a  sheep  a 
respectable  member  of  society  once  more. 

As  "a  logical  candidate,"  David  Everett,  ending  his 
four  years  as  a  member  of  the  Governor's  executive 
council,  was  the  refinement  of  political  grooming.  And 
he  was  "safe."  A  well-organized  political  machine  has 
no  use  for  any  other  sort! 

Arba  Spinney,  vociferous,  rank  outsider,  apostrophiz 
ing  the  "tramp  of  the  cowhide  boots,"  reckless  in  his 
denunciation  of  every  man  who  held  office,  promising 
everything  that  would  catch  a  vote,  urging  overturn 
for  the  sake  of  overturn  and  a  new  deal,  marked  the 
other  extreme.  For  the  mass,  Change,  labelled  Reform, 
seems  wholly  desirable.  Political  sagacity  saw  trouble 
ahead.  And  no  one  in  the  State  was  politically  more 
sagacious  than  Thelismer  Thornton,  who  had  seen  men 
come  and  seen  men  go,  and  knew  all  their  moods  and 
fancies. 

On  the  morning  that  the  State  chairman  hurried  out 
of  Fort  Canibas  he  discussed  the  matter  of  the  rival 
candidates  with  the  old  man — that  is  to  say,  he  talked 
and  Thornton  listened.  And  the  more  the  chairman 
talked,  the  more  his  own  declarations  convinced  him. 

"  Why,  the  old  bull  fiddle  can't  fool  the  convention, 
Thelismer.  He's  running  around  the  State  now,  and 


IN    CENTRE    OF    THE    BIG    STATE    WEB 

they're  listening  to  him  like  they'd  listen  to  a  steam 
calliope,  but  what  he  says  don't  amount  to  anything 
for  an  argument.  It's  the  pledged  delegates  that 
count." 

The  old  man  drew  a  fat,  black  wallet  from  his  hip 
pocket,  and  leisurely  extracted  a  packet  of  newspaper 
clippings. 

"I've  been  watching  the  lists  of  delegates  as  they've 
been  chosen,  Luke.  But  I  fail  to  see  where  you're 
getting  pledged  delegations." 

"They  don't  need  to  be  pledged,  not  the  men  our 
town  committees  are  picking." 

"  Your  town  committees  may  be  picking  the  men  for 
delegates,  but  it  is  the  caucus  that  docs  the  pledging. 
And  the  delegates  are  being  sent  out  without  labels. 
You  don't  dare  to  insist  on  the  pledges — now,  do  you?" 

"  You  know  as  well  as  I  do,  Thelismer,  there's  no  need 
of  shaking  the  red  rag  this  year.  We're  making  a  dif 
ferent  play.  We've  been  having  our  newspapers  drum 
hard  on  the  tune:  '  Leave  it  out  to  the  people.'  It  '11  be 
Everett  all  right  in  the  convention,  but  we  don't  want 
to  seem  to  be  prying  open  their  jaws  and  jamming  him 
down  their  throats." 

Thornton  fingered  his  clippings. 

"  Luke,  I  thought  you  realized  yesterday  after  that 
caucus  of  mine  was  over  just  how  sick  your  State  cam 
paign  is.  But  you've  started  in  hollering  now  to  try  to 
convince  yourself  that  it  isn't  so.  You  can't  afford  to 
do  that.  I've  been  in  this  thing  longer  than  you  have. 
I've  seen  the  symptoms  before.  I  recognize  the  signs 
of  a  stampede.  That  convention  will  be  ripe  for  one. 
And  you  know  what  will  happen  to  Dave  Everett,  once 
they  get  started!  You  and  I  know  there  ain't  a  thing 
that  can  be  said  for  him  except  that  he's  the  residuary 
legatee  of  all  the  machine  politics  that's  been  played  in 
this  State  for  the  last  twenty-five  years.  That's  be- 
8  99 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

tween  us,  and  you  and  I  might  as  well  talk  the  thing 
as  it  is.  She's  balancing,  Luke,  She's  right  up  on  end. 
And  there'll  be  enough  old  wind-bags  in  that  convention 
to  get  up  a  devil  of  a  breeze.  They'll  blow  her  over." 

The  State  chairman  had  started  to  leave,  after  his 
declaration.  His  automobile  was  purring  at  the  foot 
of  the  steps.  But  he  turned  his  back  on  the  expectant 
chauffeur,  and  tramped  onto  the  porch. 

"  You  don't  mean  to  tell  me  that  '  Fog-horn '  Spinney 
is  a  dangerous  candidate,  do  you?" 

"No,  but  Everett  is!  It  happens  once  in  so  often, 
Luke — a  situation  like  this.  Everett  is  lugging  too 
much.  Last  fire  we  had  in  the  village  here  Ed  Stilson 
tried  to  lug  an  old-fashioned  bureau  on  his  back  and  a 
feather  tick  in  his  teeth,  but  he  couldn't  get  through 
the  door." 

"  Thelismer,  why  have  you  waited  till  now  before  say 
ing  this?  I'd  rather  have  your  judgment  in  political 
futures  than  that  of  any  other  man  in  this  State.  But 
this  is  a  damnation  poor  time  to  be  getting  around  to 
me  with  it." 

"We  had  a  caucus  here  yesterday,  Luke.  I'd  only 
been  suspecting  till  then.  In  politics  I'm  quite  a  fellow 
to  judge  the  whole  piece  in  the  web  by  a  sample.  And 
I  tell  you  Everett  is  going  to  make  a  dangerous  prop 
osition  for  us!" 

Presson  stared  at  him  for  a  full  minute,  blinking, 
thinking,  knotting  his  brows,  and  chewing  fiercely  on  a 
piece  of  gum. 

"Pull  him  out — that  what  you  mean?  Well,  it  can 
be  done.  There  are  plenty  of  men  in  the  party  that  are 
all  safe  and  right,  but  haven't  been  identified  with  the 
machine." 

"And  what  will  you  say  to  Dave  Everett  and  his 
friends,  all  of  whom  you'll  need  at  the  polls?" 

"It's  a  party  exigency,  isn't  it?" 

100 


IN    CENTRE    OF    THE    BIG    STATE    WEB 

"  It  can  be  called  that — and  you  can  call  a  skunk 
'Kitty'  on  your  way  home  from  the  club,  but  that  fact 
won't  change  your  wife's  opinion  of  you  when  you 
come  in.  You  \valk  up  to  Dave  Everett  now  with  your 
political  exigency  in  your  hand,  Luke,  and  it  would 
turn  to  a  political  axegency,  and  you'd  have  a  pack  of 
rebels  on  your  back  that  would  down  you  sure!  No, 
sir!  You  can't  afford  to  smash  a  man  that  way." 

"Then  we'll  ram  him  through  the  convention,  re 
formers  or  no  reformers!" 

"You  haven't  got  your  crowd." 

"Thelismer,  you're  right!  I  wouldn't  have  admitted 
it  yesterday,  but  after  seeing  how  they  came  roaring  up 
against  you,  I'm  scared.  I'm  going  to  pull  Everett 
out  of  the  fight  and  set  up  another  man — one  of  the 
young  and  liberal  fellows.  I'll  do  it  within  twenty- 
four  hours!" 

The  Duke  replaced  his  clippings  and  shoved  the  big 
wallet  into  his  pocket. 

"  Sudden  remedies  are  sometimes  good  in  extreme 
cases,  Luke,"  he  drawled,  "but  administering  knock 
out  drops  to  a  sick  party  is  not  to  be  recommended." 

The  chairman's  patience  left  him  then. 

"  What  kind  of  a  trick  is  this,  standing  up  here  at  the 
eleventh  hour  and  putting  the  knife  into  your  party?" 
he  demanded,  wrathfully. 

"  I  had  a  dog  once,  Luke,  that  was  snapping  at  flies 
in  general  as  he  was  lying  on  the  porch  here,  and  he 
snapped  at  a  brown  hackle  fly  that  was  hitched  onto  a 
fish-line.  And  he  ran  off  dowrn  the  road  with  a  hook  in 
his  mouth  and  sixty  yards  of  line  and  a  pole  following 
him.  You'd  better  spit  out  that  last  fly,  Luke.  Now 
will  you  take  a  little  advice  from  me,  on  the  condition 
that  I'll  follow  up  that  advice  with  some  practical 
help?" 

"That's  what  I'm  waiting  for." 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"'  Then  you  get  back  onto  your  job,  and  leave  Everett 
just  where  he  is — not  one  word  to  him  or  his  friends. 
That's  the  advice  part.  The  help  will  come  when  I've 
got  a  few  things  straightened  out  a  little  more." 

"  The  convention  is  less  than  three  weeks  off.  What's 
your  plan?  I  want  to  know  it  now." 

"Well,  you  won't." 

"  Do  you  think  for  a  moment  that  I,  the  chairman  of 
the  Republican  State  Committee,  am  going  into  a  con 
vention  with  blinders  on?" 

"  You  can  go  in  any  way  you  want  to,"  retorted  the 
Duke,  calmly.  "  But  that's  all  you're  going  to  hear 
from  me  to-day,  Luke.  Faith  without  works  is  no  good. 
You  furnish  the  faith,  and  I'll  furnish  the  works." 

"  I  never  heard  of  any  such  devilish  campaign  manage 
ment  as  this,"  grumbled  the  chairman.  "You're  talk 
ing  to  me  as  though  I  didn't  know  any  more  politics 
than  a  village  hog-reeve." 

"Well,  I'm  the  doctor  in  this  case,  providing  I'm 
called,"  said  the  old  man.  "Just  now  I'm  feeling  of 
the  pulse  and  making  the  diagnosis,  and  am  getting 
ready  to  prescribe  the  dose.  I'll  call  you  into  con 
sultation,  Luke,  when  the  right  time  comes,  and  I'll 
guarantee  that  nothing  will  leak  out  to  wound  your 
pride  or  your  political  reputation.  But  I  want  to  say 
that  if  you  stand  here  to-day  waiting  to  hear  any  more 
about  what  I  intend  to  do,  you'd  better  shut  off  that 
automobile.  You  won't  be  leaving  for  quite  a  spell." 

The  chairman  knew  his  man.  He  trotted  down  the 
steps  and  got  into  his  car. 

"  When  you  get  ready  to  let  me  know  how  you're 
running  this  campaign,  you'll  find  me  at  headquarters," 
he  said,  wrathfully,  by  way  of  farewell.  Then  he  de 
parted,  with  the  news  of  how  Thelismer  Thornton  was 
still  boss  of  his  northern  principality — but  that  Thelismer 
Thornton,  Nestor  of  State  politicians,  had  calmly  ar- 

102 


IN    CENTRE    OF    THE    BIG    STATE    WEB 

rogated  to  himself  the  sole  handling  of  the  biggest  ques 
tion  in  State  politics,  the  chairman  kept  to  himself. 
He  was  in  too  desperate  straits  to  rebel  at  that  time. 
Furthermore,  he  knew  that  Thelismer  Thornton  in  the 
years  past  had  served  as  kedge  for  many  a  political  craft 
that  a  lee  shore  threatened.  He  was  measurably  con 
tented,  after  reflection,  to  have  the  old  man  take  the 
thing  into  his  own  hands  in  that  masterful  fashion. 

The  Duke  pulled  his  chair  to  the  end  of  the  porch, 
where  he  could  look  across  to  the  far  hills  beyond  the 
river.  He  lighted  one  of  his  long  cigars,  put  his  feet  on 
the  rail,  and  began  to  smoke,  squinting  thoughtfully, 
pondering  deeply. 

To  all  practical  intents  and  purposes  he  was  holding 
there  on  the  porch  of  "The  Barracks"  the  next  State 
convention  of  the  Republican  party.  The  birds  were 
busy  about  the  old  block-house  opposite,  coming  and 
going.  He  seemed  to  be  studying  their  movements 
through  his  half-open  eyes,  as  though  they  were  pros 
pective  delegates.  And  at  last  a  grim  smile  of  satis 
faction  fixed  itself  upon  his  face. 

His  grandson  found  him.  in  this  amiable  mood  when 
he  came  with  the  losers  by  the  Jo  Quacca  fire.  Each 
man  submitted  his  list  rather  defiantly.  They  sat  down 
and  scowled  while  Harlan  told  what  he  had  discovered 
in  his  investigation  of  the  circumstances. 

"  I  have  not  tried  to  beat  them  down,"  he  concluded. 
"  I  even  reminded  them  of  a  few  items  they  had  over 
looked.  What  happened  yesterday  was  enough  to  make 
almost  any  man  forget  things." 

He  was  inclined  to  be  a  little  defiant,  too,  fighting  the 
battles  of  the  property  owners,  even  though  his  own 
pocket  must  suffer  by  the  settlement. 

But  the  Duke  preserved  his  unruffled  demeanor.  He 
slowly  made  some  figures  on  the  bottoms  cf  the  papers 
and  passed  the  sheets  to  his  grandson. 

103 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"Fill  in  the  checks  and  bring  them  out  here  and  I'll 
sign  'em,"  he  directed.  And  as  Harlan  bent  over  him, 
he  whispered :  "  You're  playing  good  politics  now,  boy. 
Stand  up  for  the  under  dog.  I  see  you're  remembering 
that  you're  a  candidate." 

"I'm  only  doing  what's  right,"  protested  the  young 
man. 

"  When  you  can  be  right  and  still  play  politics,  you're 
getting  ahead  fast,"  murmured  the  Duke.  "Fill  in  the 
checks!" 

"But  you've  increased  their  own  appraisal!  You're 
giving  them  more  than  they've  asked  for!"  Harlan 
was  careless  of  the  presence  of  the  three  farmers. 

"Well,  wasn't  it  your  own  suggestion  that  we  use 
these  men  right?"  demanded  his  grandfather.  He 
gazed  benignantly  on  the  claimants.  "  I'm  square, 
myself,  when  it  comes  to  my  debts,  boys.  You  all 
know  that.  But  Harlan  argued  your  case  last  night  in  a 
way  that's  worth  the  extra  money.  If  he  can  do  that 
here  at  home,  first  crack  out  of  the  box,  when  it's  our 
own  money  at  stake,  don't  you  think  he'll  do  a  pretty 
good  job  for  you  down  at  the  State  House,  where  it  '11 
be  a  case  of  the  public  money?" 

His  grandson  had  gone  into  the  house.  He  had  found 
himself  at  a  loss  for  words,  suddenly. 

"  Harlan  is  as  straight  as  a  stilya'd,  and  allus  has 
been,"  admitted  one  of  the  men,  gratefully.  He  was 
wondering  how  much  the  Duke  had  added  to  the 
amount. 

"  All  of  you  think  now  that  a  fellow  like  that  will 
make  a  pretty  good  sort  of  a  representative,  don't  you?" 

They  muttered  assent. 

"  Well,  why  did  you  back-district  chaps  come  in  here 
yesterday  and  try  to  lick  him  in  the  caucus?" 

They  had  no  answer  ready.  They  looked  at  the  porch 
floor,  and  rasped  their  hard  hands  together  and  cracked 

104 


IN    CENTRE    OF   THE    BIG    STATE    WEB 

their  knuckles  in  embarrassment.  The  old  man  kept 
his  complacency. 

"  I'll  tell  you  how  it  was,  boys.  You  got  fooled,  now, 
didn't  you  ?  You  let  'em  use  you  like  old  Samson  used 
the  foxes.  Now,  the  next  time  one  of  those  disturber 
fellows  ties  a  blazing  pine  knot  to  your  tail,  you  sit  right 
down  and  gnaw  the  string  in  two  before  you  start  to  run. 
Because  a  man  holds  office  it's  no  sign  he's  a  renegade. 
You'll  usually  find  the  renegades  standing  outside  and 
slandering  him  and  trying  to  get  his  office  away  for 
their  own  use.  They  got  you  going,  didn't  they,  when 
they  went  around  telling  that  I  thought  I  owned  you  in 
this  district,  body  and  soul  ?  Got  you  jealous  and  sus 
picious  and  mad?  Can  you  afford  to  be  jealous  and 
mad  when  you've  got  a  fellow  like  Harlan  Thornton 
willing  to  go  down  to  the  legislature  and  work  for  you? 
Do  you  want  one  of  those  blatherskites  to  represent  you  ? 
Now  tell  me!" 

"  Poor  men  that  have  to  work  all  the  time  don't  have 
the  chance  to  look  into  public  things  as  much  as  they 
ought  to,"  said  one  of  the  men,  apologetically.  "And 
sometimes  when  a  fellow  comes  around  who  can  talk 
smooth  we  get  fooled." 

"  You've  bought  a  lot  of  fake  things  from  travelling 
agents  in  this  county.  Now  don't  buy  fake  politics." 
He  took  the  checks  from  his  grandson's  hand.  Harlan 
had  brought  them,  and  a  pen.  He  cocked  his  knee  and 
scrawled  his  signature.  They  came  to  him  and  took 
their  checks.  Each  stood  there,  holding  the  slip  of 
paper  awkwardly  pinched  between  thumb  and  forefinger. 
The  Duke  waited. 

"  I  want  to  say  this,"  stammered  the  spokesman. 
"  You  get  fooled  sometimes.  Most  often  in  politics. 
But  no  one  can  fool  us  again — not  about  the  Thornton 
family." 

"Pass  that  word  around  the  district,  boys,"  advised 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

the  Duke,  complacently.  "There's  an  election  coming, 
you  know." 

They  departed,  three  new  and  promising  evangelists. 

"Campaign  expenses,  bub,"  broke  in  the  old  man, 
when  Harlan  began;  "campaign  expenses!  It's  a  soggy 
lump  of  dough  out  back  there.  That  kind  of  yeast  will 
lighten  it." 

He  looked  across  at  the  hills,  squinting  reflectively 
again,  and  at  last  glanced  up  at  his  grandson,  who  stood 
regarding  him  with  thoughtful  hesitation. 

"Say  it,  boy!"  he  counselled.  "A  little  more  bile 
left  over  from  yesterday?" 

"No,  sir!  Not  that.  But  I  think  I'll  send  Ben  Kyle 
in  with  the  crews  and  let  him  locate  the  new  camps." 

"  I  didn't  intend  to  have  you  go  back — not  if  you'd 
listen  to  me.  We've  got  men  enough  to  attend  to  that 
sort  of  work,  Harlan.  I  want  you  with  me  for  a  while. 
I've  got  some  plans  for  you." 

"And  I've  got  a  few  plans  for  myself.  Now  that  I'm 
in  this,  I  propose  to  be  in  it  in  earnest." 

"  You  wouldn't  be  a  Thornton  if  you  didn't  get  at  it 
all  over,"  commended  the  Duke.  "You  see,  I  under 
stood  you,  boy!" 

"  I'm  going  to  call  on  every  man  in  this  district  and 
tell  him  where  I  stand.  I'm  going  to  tell  him  that  if 
there  are  honest  men  in  that  legislature  I  propose  to  be 
counted  in  with  them.  I  may  be  a  very  humble  helper, 
but  I'm  going  to  lift  with  all  my  strength,  grandfather,  on 
the  square-deal  end  of  every  proposition  that  I  find  to 
lay  hold  of." 

"Good  politics,  boy,  all  good  politics!"  declared  the 
old  man.  With  humor  that  had  a  little  malicious  fun 
in  it  he  avoided  endorsing  this  impulsive  zeal  as  any 
thing  except  shrewd  playing  of  his  own  game.  But  his 
eyes  told  the  young  man  what  his  lips  did  not  utter. 
There  was  pride  in  them,  encouragement,  joy  that  would 

106 


IN    CENTRE    OF   THE    BIG    STATE   WEB 

not  be  hidden — and  something  else:  wistful  regret,  per 
haps;  it  seemed  to  be  that — the  regret  that  age  feels 
when  it  has  lost  its  illusions  and  beholds  them  springing 
again  in  the  heart  of  fervent  youth ;  regret  conscious  that 
in  its  turn  this  new  faith  in  things  present  and  things 
to  come  will  be  dead  and  cold,  too. 

"  I  don't  think  we  have  to  worry  much  about  the 
election,  Harlan.  Go  out  and  tackle  the  boys.  You'll 
make  good.  Take  two  days.  That  '11  be  time  enough. 
And  then  I  want  you." 

Harlan's  eyes  questioned  him. 

"  You  know  I  opened  up  a  little  to  you  last  night,  bub. 
You're  all  I've  got,  you  know.  I've  not  been  much  of 
a  hand  to  talk.  I  don't  believe  you've  realized  just  how 
I've  felt.  But  we'll  let  it  stand  as  it  is.  I've  got  plans 
for  you,  boy,  better  than  the  little  pancake  politics  of 
this  district.  I  know  a  few  things  in  politics.  I'm  old 
enough  to  understand  how  to  put  you  in  right.  It's 
one  thing  to  know  how,  and  it's  another  thing  to  find 
occasion  just  ripe  and  ready." 

He  rolled  his  cigar  to  the  centre  of  his  mouth  and  lifted 
the  corners  in  an  illuminating  grin. 

"  Bub,  in  two  days  be  ready  to  come  with  me.  I'm 
going  to  put  you  in  right!" 


CHAPTER  X 


A    POLITICAL    CONVERT 

OR  two  days  Harlan  Thornton  rode  about 
over  the  Fort  Canibas  district.  He  talked 
to  men  at  their  doors,  in  their  shops,  over 
the  fences  of  their  fields.  He  knew  that 
some  sneered  at  him  behind  his  back. 
Some  even  dared  to  arraign  him,  boldly 
and  angrily,  and  flung  his  motives  in  his  face,  accusing 
the  grandfather  of  inciting  the  grandson  to  this  attempt 
to  catch  votes. 

He  realized  that  most  of  the  voters  did  not  under 
stand  him  aright.  They  did  not  understand  sincerity 
in  politics.  But  his  own  consciousness  of  rectitude 
supplied  his  consolation  and  provided  his  impetus.  Till 
then  he  had  employed  the  Thornton  grit  only  in  his 
business  efforts;  he  employed  it  now  with  just  as  much 
vigor  in  his  proselyting.  Once  in  the  fight,  he  was 
awake  to  what  it  meant.  His  frank  earnestness  im 
pressed  those  with  whom  he  talked.  He  did  not  lose 
his  temper,  wrhen  men  assailed  him  and  tried  to  dis 
credit  his  protestations.  Here  and  there,  in  neighbor 
hoods,  knots  of  farmers  gathered  about  him  and  listened. 
He  began  to  win  his  way,  and  he  knew  it.  The  knowl 
edge  that  Harlan  Thornton  was  a  square  man  in  business 
needed  no  herald  in  that  section. 

That  this  integrity  would  extend  to  his  politics  grew 
into  belief  more  and  more  as  he  went  about. 

The  distrust  of  him,  because  of  his  associations,  a 

108 


A    POLITICAL    CONVERT 

suspicion  fostered  by  the  paid  agents  of  the  opposition, 
began  to  give  way  before  his  calm,  earnest  young  man 
hood.  But  in  every  knot  of  men  he  found  a  few  bitter 
irreconcilables  still.  They  were  those  whom  change 
invites,  and  the  established  order  offends.  One  man, 
unable  to  provoke  him  by  vituperation,  and  in  a  frenzy 
of  childish  rage  because  Harlan's  calm  poise  was  not  dis 
turbed  by  his  outpourings,  ran  at  him  and  struck  him. 
He  was  a  little  man,  and  though  he  leaped  when  he 
struck,  the  blow  landed  no  higher  than  the  shoulder  that 
Harlan  turned  to  him.  And  when  he  leaped  again  the 
young  man  caught  him  by  the  wrist  and  smiled  down 
on  him,  unperturbed. 

"  If  that's  the  way  you  talk  politics,  Sam,  I'll  have 
to  adjourn  the  debate,"  he  said,  quietly.  And  the  story 
of  that  went  the  rounds,  accompanied  by  much  laughter, 
and  the  big,  sturdy,  serene  young  man  who  was  master 
of  his  own  passions  met  smiles  wherever  he  went. 

Another  story  preceded  him,  too.  "Fighting"  Mac- 
Cracken,  of  the  Jo  Quacca  neighborhood,  smarting  ever 
since  that  day  in  the  yard  of  "The  Barracks,"  jealous 
of  his  prestige  as  a  man  of  might,  offered  obscene  and 
brutal  insult  to  the  name  of  Thelismer  Thornton  in  the 
hearing  of  his  grandson.  It  had  been  hinted  previously 
along  the  border  that  the  six-foot  scion  of  the  Thorntons 
was  a  handy  man  in  a  scrap,  but  now  his  prowess  was 
surely  established.  MacCracken  went  about,  a  living 
advertisement  of  how  effectually  righteous  anger  can 
back  up  two  good  fists. 

Therefore,  respect  attended  on  good-humor  and  went 
with,  or  ahead  of,  the  candidate. 

He  wondered  at  himself  sometimes.  He  hardly 
understood  the  zeal  that  now  animated  him,  so  sudden 
a  convert.  But  the  zest  of  youth  was  in  him;  the  spirit 
of  the  toil  of  the  big  woods,  of  the  race  with  drought 
when  the  drives  are  going  down,  the  everlasting  struggle 

109 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

with  nature's  forces,  the  rivalry  between  man  and  man 
where  accomplishment  that  bulks  large  in  the  eyes  of 
men  is  the  only  accomplishment  that  counts — all  these 
spurred  him  to  make  good,  now  that  he  had  begun. 
In  the  open  arena  of  life  his  training  had  been  that  of 
man  to  man,  and  the  best  man  taking  the  prize.  And 
his  reading  during  the  long  evenings  had  been  more  in 
the  way  of  education  in  public  matters  than  he  had 
realized.  As  for  ideals,  he  had  followed  the  masterful: 
men  who  preached  a  gospel  that  appealed  to  him,  liv 
ing  the  life  of  the  open,  battling  for  the  weak  against  the 
selfishly  strong  —  so  it  seemed  to  the  one  who  studied 
their  achievements  on  the  printed  page.  With  his  own 
opportunity  now  thrust  upon  him,  Harlan  Thornton 
determined  to  make  candor  his  code,  honesty  his  sys 
tem.  He  entertained  no  false  ideas  of  his  personal  im 
portance.  But  his  lack  of  experience  did  not  daunt 
him.  He  simply  made  up  his  mind  that  he  would  go 
forward,  keeping  soul  and  heart  open,  as  well  as  eyes 
and  ears.  He  believed  that  the  square  deal  could  not 
be  hidden  from  those  who  entered  public  life  in  that 
manner. 

He  did  not  discuss  all  this  with  his  grandfather.  If 
he  had,  Thelismer  Thornton  would  have  been  vastly 
interested.  He  might  have  been  amused.  Probably 
he  would  have  been  more  amused  than  interested,  for 
hot  youth  and  glowing  ideals  have  humorous  phases 
for  the  man  who  has  lived  among  men  for  more  than 
eighty  years. 

But  that  he  had  unloosed  a  bottle  imp  in  his  own 
family  would  not  have  occurred  to  the  old  man,  even 
after  he  had  listened,  for  he  still  had  the  cynical  belief 
that  circumstances  must  control,  interest  convert,  and 
personal  profit  kill  the  most  glowing  ardor  in  reform. 

Lacking  the  gift  of  divination,  Thelismer  Thornton 
watched  the  rapid  development  of  this  bottle  imp  with 


A    POLITICAL    CONVERT 

much  complacency.  "  Whispering"  Urban  Cobb  brought 
him  reports  from  the  field.  Talleyrand  Sylvester  was 
trying  to  place  bets  on  Harlan  Thornton,  but  there  were 
no  takers.  It  was  even  stated  that  Enoch  Dudley  was 
finding  it  hard  work  to  secure  pledges  enough  to  warrant 
his  running  as  an  independent  candidate. 

Harlan  Thornton,  looking  in  from  the  outside,  had 
found  politics,  as  managed  for  him,  an  abhorrent  mess. 
Now,  plunged  in,  he  was  embracing  his  opportunity, 
and  finding  good  in  the  contest. 

On  the  other  hand,  Harlan  Thornton,  making  his  own 
plea  and  his  own  pledges  as  a  candidate,  was  embraced 
by  the  voters.  He  was  not  a  mere  legatee  forced  on 
them  by  a  boss — he  was  speaking  for  himself,  and  the 
sincerity  of  the  young  man  made  itself  felt. 

At  the  end  of  the  appointed  two  days  he  knew  that 
his  prospects  were  safe.  One  of  the  other  towns  in  the 
district  and  three  of  the  plantations  had  endorsed  his 
name  in  caucus.  If  Thelismer  Thornton  had  been 
responsible  for  his  candidacy,  so  was  his  own  personality 
responsible  for  this  clearing  away  of  difficulties.  He  felt 
his  self-respect  returning.  That  cruel  wound  to  his 
pride  was  healing. 

He  was  riding  home  in  the  evening  of  the  second  day, 
past  the  end  of  the  long  bridge,  finding  comfort  in  this 
thought. 

A  white  figure,  framed  in  the  black  mouth  of  the 
bridge,  startled  rider  and  horse. 

"It's  only  Clare,"  she  said.  "I  heard  you  were  up 
the  river  to-day,  and  I've  been  waiting  for  you." 

He  rode  closer.  It  was  a  new  and  strange  Clare  who 
was  revealed  to  him  in  the  dim  light.  She  was  gowned 
and  gloved,  and  her  broad  hat  hid  her  boyish  curls.  She 
walked  out  of  the  gloom  and  leaned  against  the  bridge 
rail. 

"Ah,  the  little  playmate  did  ride  away  from  me  for- 

iii 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

ever!"  he  cried,  looking  her  up  and  down.  "But  this 
young  lady — why,  she  takes  my  breath  away!"  He  took 
off  his  hat  and  bowed  to  the  pommel. 

"  You  needn't  make  fun  of  me,  Mr.  Harlan  Thorn 
ton,"  she  returned,  crisply.  "And  a  real  young  lady 
wouldn't  come  down  in  this  bridge  and  wait  for  you.  I 
wanted  to  tell  you  I'm  glad.  I  hear  all  about  your 
success.  When  I  was  a  little  girl  I  didn't  want  you  to 
go  away  and  be  a  big  man.  But  now  that  I'm  a  woman 
I'm  glad  you're  going.  I  wanted  you  to  realize,  Mr. 
Harlan  Thornton,  that  I'm  a  woman,  so  if  you'll  reach 
down  your  hand  I'll  shake  it  and  congratulate  you." 

He  took  her  little  hand  in  both  his  own. 

"  You  were  a  real  little  woman  two  days  ago  right  here 
in  this  place,"  he  said,  gratefully.  "I  didn't  realize  it 
at  that  moment,  but  it  was  what  you  said  to  me  that 
put  some  real  sense  into  my  head,  after  all.  It  set  me 
to  thinking." 

"What  kind  of  laws  are  you  going  to  make?"  she 
demanded. 

"  I  don't  think  I'll  have  much  to  do  with  making  laws, 
Clare.  All  I  can  do  is  listen  and  try  to  be  on  the  right 
side  when  the  voting  comes." 

"Can't  you  make  a  law  to  oblige  old  men  to  stop 
fighting  each  other,"  she  demanded,  petulantly — "fight 
ing  each  other,  and  making  all  their  folks  uncomfort 
able?" 

"  I  think  it  would  be  a  good  law,  especially  in  one  case 
I  know  about.  But  sometimes  the  best  laws  don't  get 
passed." 

"  I'll  come  down  and  make  a  speech  for  it.  You  said 
I  talked  like  old  folks  the  other  evening." 

"A  speech  from  you  would  convert  them  all,"  he  re 
turned,  indulging  her  in  this  childish  banter.  "  You  see, 
you  converted  me  with  only  a  few  words,  and  I  was  a 
hard  case  just  then." 

112 


A    POLITICAL    CONVERT 

"Then  I'll  come  down  to  your  legislature  and  we'll 
make  it  into  a  law,  and  the  punishment  shall  be,  if  they 
don't  make  up  and  allow  their  folks  to  be  comfortable 
and  friends,  they  must  have  their  old  heads  bumped 
together  —  bumped  harder  and  harder  till  they  shake 
hands  and  make  up  and  live  happy  ever  after.  Old 
folks  haven't  any  business  to  stay  mad.  They  won't  get 
into  heaven  if  they  do." 

She  withdrew  her  hand,  and  went  away  into  the  black 
mouth  of  the  bridge. 

"That's  all,  Big  Boy!"  she  cried.  "It  was  some  busi 
ness,  you  see,  that  I  waited  to  talk  over  with  you.  And 
a  grown-up  young  lady  mustn't  stay  after  her  business  is 
finished." 

"But  I'll  walk  home  with  you!"  he  called. 

"  No,  I'll  not  be  frightened  at  the  dark  until  I  get  old 
enough  to  be  called  an  old  maid,"  she  said,  mischievous 
ly.  "Good-night!" 

He  waited  by  the  side  of  the  river  until  he  saw  her 
white  figure  safely  through  the  dark  bridge,  and  on  its 
\vay  up  the  quiet  hillside  past  the  church.  Then  he 
rode  to  "The  Barracks,"  his  mind  dwelling  a  bit  more 
particularly  on  the  vagaries  of  womankind  than  it  ever 
had  before. 

He  joined  his  grandfather  on  the  porch  after  he  had 
eaten  his  supper  alone. 

"  The  fences,  so  I  hear,  Harlan,  will  pass  the  inspection 
of  the  most  expert  fence-viewers,"  he  chuckled.  "So 
I  suppose  you'll  be  ready  to  leave  with  me  to-morrow." 

"  If  you  think  it's  necessary  to  have  me  go  anywhere 
with  you,  grandfather,  I'll  go." 

There  was  silence  for  a  time.  The  young  man  was 
waiting.  The  old  man  smoked  placidly. 

"  Is  there  any  reason  why  you  can't  tell  me  where  we 
are  going?"  inquired  Harlan. 

"  No  especial  reason — only  I'll  be  wasting  time  telling 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

you.  You'll  see  for  yourself.  We'll  meet  a  big  man  or 
so— that's  all!" 

"The  man  I'd  like  to  meet,"  began  the  young  man, 
fervently,  "is  one  that  every  young  chap  in  this  coun 
try  can  follow  and  ought  to  follow,  if  he's  got  red  blood 
and  honesty  in  him.  I  wish  I  could  meet  him  now 
when  I'm  starting  out,  if  only  to  shake  his  hand." 

"  You'd  better  not  meet  any  man  so  long  as  he's 
wearing  a  halo,  where  you're  concerned.  You'll  find 
political  halos,  bub,  when  you  get  too  near  to  'em,  some 
thing  like  restaurant  doughnuts — holes  surrounded  by 
poor  cooking.  Better  keep  away  a  spell.  That's  why 
I'm  not  going  to  tell  you  where  we're  going — not  just 
now.  I  might  go  to  cracking  up  the  man  too  much.  I'll 
let  you  build  your  own  halo  for  him — and  then  maybe 
you  can  eat  your  own  cooking,  provided  you  find  the 
halo  a  doughnut." 

They  left  Fort  Canibas  the  next  morning,  travelling 
humbly  by  mail  stage  to  the  railroad  terminus.  The 
branch  line  took  them  to  a  populous  junction,  and  by  that 
time  Harlan  Thornton  began  to  appreciate  that  his 
grandfather  was  rather  more  of  a  figure  in  State  politics 
than  he  had  dreamed.  He  had  made  many  trips  with 
him  through  the  State  in  years  past,  but  never  before 
when  men  understood,  some  dimly,  some  fearfully,  that 
a  political  crisis  was  on.  Thelismer  Thornton's  scat  in 
the  train,  his  room  at  the  hotel,  was  besieged  by  those 
who  respectfully  solicited  his  opinions.  They  seemed 
to  realize  that  some  of  the  wisdom  of  the  fathers  in  State 
politics,  of  the  patriarchs  with  whom  he  had  trained,  had 
fallen  to  him  by  natural  inheritance.  But  though  he 
listened  patiently,  he  said  but  little.  Harlan  noticed, 
however,  that  he  did  take  especial  pains  to  deprecate 
some  of  the  suppressive  movements  advised  by  the  more 
hot-headed  managers. 

"Let  things  swing  as  they're  going,"  he  advised. 

114 


A    POLITICAL    CONVERT 

"  She'll  take  care  of  herself,  give  her  free  run  right  now. 
But  you  can't  pinch  up  a  line  gale  by  putting  a  clothes 
pin  on  the  nose  of  the  tempest.  Let  her  snort!  Brace 
the  party  and  face  it  like  a  hitching -post!  Don't  try 
to  choke  off  Arba  Spinney.  Let  him  froth." 

His  grandfather  was  so  insistent  on  this  point  that 
Harlan  took  notice  of  its  frequent  repetition  and  the 
earnestness  with  which  it  was  pressed.  He  began  to 
understand  that  some  plan  lay  back  of  his  grandfather's 
silence  to  him  and  to  others  as  to  his  private  reasons  for 
this  appeal.  He  began  to  take  lively  interest  in  the 
ramifications  of  practical  politics  as  played  by  the  hand 
of  a  master. 
9 


CHAPTER  XI 


A    MAN    FROM    THE    SHADOWS 

HERE  was  a  provoking  flavor  of  mystery 
about  Thelismer  Thornton's  early  move 
ments  the  next  day.  His  grandson  be 
came  still  more  interested.  This  element 
in  politics  appealed  to  him,  for  he  was 
young. 

They  left  the  city  by  an  early  train.  The  Duke 
secluded  himself  and  his  grandson  in  a  drawing-room 
of  the  car. 

It  was  an  express  -  train  which  did  not  stop  at  way 
stations.  But  when  the  conductor  came  for  the  tickets 
the  old  man  inquired  whether  orders  had  been  issued  to 
have  the  train  held  up  at  a  certain  siding. 

"Yes,  sir,  to  leave  two  passengers,"  said  the  con 
ductor.  He  was  courteous,  but  he  winked  at  the  old 
politician  with  the  air  of  one  who  thought  he  understood 
something.  He  exhibited  his  telegram  from  the  dis 
patcher.  "  Can't  be  much  politics  there,  Mr.  Thornton," 
he  remarked,  by  way  of  jest. 

"I'm  on  a  fishing-trip,"  explained  the  Duke,  blandly. 
And  the  conductor,  who  knew  that  the  siding  had  no 
fishing  water  within  ten  miles  of  it,  went  away  chuckling 
in  order  to  applaud  the  joke  of  a  man  of  power. 

A  few  hours  later  the  two  were  let  off  at  the  siding 
and  the  train  hurried  on. 

There  was  a  farm-house  near  the  railroad.  They  ate 
dinner  with  the  farmer  and  his  wife,  who  seemed  to 

116 


A    MAN    FROM    THE    SHADOWS 

realize  that  they  were  entertaining  some  one  out  of  the 
ordinary,  and  were  much  flustered  thereby.  Especially 
did  the  farmer  struggle  with  his  vague  memory  of 
personalities,  asking  many  round-about  questions  and 
"supposing"  many  possibilities  that  the  Duke  placidly 
neglected  to  confirm. 

The  only  definite  information  the  farmer  received  was 
that  the  big  elderly  man  wanted  himself  and  his  com 
panion  conveyed  to  Burnside  Village  by  wagon,  starting 
in  the  late  afternoon. 

"  I'll  take  you,"  said  the  man;  "but  what  sticks  me  is 
that  you  didn't  stay  right  on  board  that  train.  It  stops 
at  Burnside  regular,  and  it  don't  stop  here  at  all." 

"But  it  stopped  to-day,"  remarked  the  Duke. 

"  I  know  it  did,  and  that's  what  sticks  me  again." 

The  old  man  rose  from  the  table  and  smiled  down  on 
him. 

"  Here's  a  good  cigar,  brother.  I've  often  worked 
out  many  a  puzzle  while  having  a  bang-up  smoke." 

He  invited  Harlan  by  a  nod  of  the  head,  and  they 
went  out  and  strolled  in  the  maple  grove  behind  the 
house. 

"  I  suppose  you  think  by  this  time,  bub,  that  I'm  in 
my  second  childhood,  and  playing  dime  novel.  But 
there  are  some  things  in  politics  that  have  to  be  done  as 
gentle  and  careful  as  picking  a  rose  petal  off  a  school- 
ma'am's  shoulder."  The  Duke  chuckled  and  smoked 
for  a  time.  "When  I've  had  a  job  of  that  sort  to  do  I 
haven't  even  talked  to  myself,  Harlan.  So  you  mustn't 
think  I'm  distrustful  of  you  because  I  don't  tell  you 
what's  on." 

"I'm  willing  to  wait,"  said  his  grandson. 

"  Learn  your  lesson,  Harlan — the  one  I'm  trying  to 
teach  you  now.  I  never  knew  but  one  man  who  could 
keep  his  mouth  shut  under  all  circumstances  when  he  felt 
jt  was  his  duty  to  do  so.  That  was  old  Ben  Holt.  He's 

117 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

dead  now.  He  fell  off  a  bridge  on  his  way  to  church  and 
didn't  holler  'Help!'  for  fear  of  breaking  the  Sabbath. 
You  don't  find  any  more  of  that  kind  in  these  days — 
not  in  political  matters.  I'm  not  distrusting  you,  I  say, 
but  I'm  teaching  you  the  lesson.  Keep  your  mouth 
shut  till  it's  time  to  open  it.  I'm  drawing  this  thing 
here  strong  on  you,  so  as  to  impress  it.  As  for  the 
other  fellows — if  I  had  got  off  the  train  at  Burnside  to 
day  the  news  would  have  been  in  every  afternoon  paper 
in  the  State.  They'd  only  need  that  one  fact  to  build 
fifty  stories  on — all  different.  Most  of  those  stories 
would  have  hurt;  there'd  have  been  one  guess,  at  least, 
that  would  kill  the  scheme.  Sit  down  here,  and  let's 
take  it  easy." 

He  sat  at  the  foot  of  a  tree,  his  broad  straw  hat  beside 
him.  He  leaned  his  head  against  the  trunk,  and  gazed 
upward  and  away  from  his  grandson.  When  the  ques 
tion  came  it  was  so  irrelevant,  so  astonishing,  that  the 
young  man  gasped  without  replying. 

"  Harlan,  how  do  you  stand  with  the  Kavanagh 
girl?" 

The  old  man  smoked  on  in  the  silence  without  re 
moving  his  gaze  from  the  leaves  above  his  head. 

"  I  want  to  confess  to  you,  my  boy,  that  your  old 
grandfather  made  rather  a  disgraceful  exhibition  of 
himself  the  other  day.  But  as  I  said  then,  a  man  will 
thrash  and  swear  at  a  hornet  and  make  an  ass  of  him 
self,  generally,  in  the  operation.  The  impudent  little 
fool  didn't  realize  what  a  big  matter  she  was  trifling 
with." 

"Grandfather,"  protested  Harlan,  manfully,  "that's 
no  way  to  speak  of  a  young  lady.  You  ask  me  how 
I  stand  ?  I  stand  this  way — I'll  not  have  the  child  men 
tioned  in  any  such  manner — not  in  my  hearing;  and 
that's  with  all  respect  to  you,  sir." 

"Young  lady — child?     Well,  which  is  she?" 

118 


A    MAN    FROM    THE    SHADOWS 

"I  don't  know,"  confessed  Harlan,  ingenuously. 
"And  it  doesn't  make  much  difference." 

"Sort  of  ashamed  of  me,  aren't  you?"  inquired  his 
grandfather.  "  A  man  that  you've  seen  all  the  politi 
cians  catering  to  the  last  day  or  so,  and  small  enough  to 
bandy  insults  with  a  snippet  of  a  girl !  Well,  bub,  there's 
a  lot  of  childishness  in  human  nature.  It  breaks  out 
once  in  a  while.  Cuss  a  tack,  and  grin  and  bear  an 
amputation!  We'll  let  the  girl  alone.  I  don't  seem  to 
get  in  right  when  she  is  mentioned.  But  I  wanted  to 
have  you  tell  me  that  you  don't  intend  to  marry  Dennis 
Kavanagh's  daughter.  You  can't  afford  to  do  that, 
boy!  Not  with  your  prospects.  And  now  I'm  not  say 
ing  anything  against  the  girl.  We'll  leave  her  out,  I 
say.  It's  just  that  she  isn't  the  kind  of  a  woman — 
when  she  gets  to  be  a  woman — that  I  want  to  see  mated 
with  you."  He  burst  out:  "  Dammit,  Harlan,  I  can  see 
where  you're  going  to  land  in  this  State  if  you'll  let 
your  old  gramp  have  free  rein!  And  the  right  kind 
of  a  wife  is  half  the  battle  in  what  you're  going 
into." 

"  Have  you  got  that  right  kind  picked  out  for  me — 
along  with  the  rest?  You  talk  as  though  you  had." 

It  was  said  almost  in  the  tone  of  insult.  It  might 
have  been  the  tone — it  might  have  been  that  the  taunt 
touched  upon  the  truth:  Thelismer  Thornton's  face 
flushed.  He  did  not  seem  to  find  reply  easy. 

"There's  only  this  to  say,  grandfather.  I  know 
you're  interested  in  me  and  in  seeing  me  get  ahead  in 
the  world.  You  pushed  me  into  politics,  and  I'm  trying 
to  make  good.  I'm  glad  you  did  it — I'll  say  that  now. 
I  see  opportunities  ahead  if  I  stay  square  and  honest. 
But  don't  you  try  to  push  me  into  marriage.  I'm  going 
to  do  my  own  choosing  there.  And  that  doesn't  mean 
that  I'm  in  love  with  Clare  Kavanagh,  or  intend  to  marry 
Clare  Kavanagh,  or  want  to  marry  her — or  that  she  wants 

119 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

to  marry  me.  That's  straight,  and  I  don't  want  to  talk 
about  it  any  more." 

He  stood  up,  and  his  tone  was  defiant. 

"You'd  better  take  a  walk,  bub,"  commended  the 
Duke,  quietly.  "  I'm  going  to  nap  for  a  little  while. 
We  may  be  up  late  to-night." 

He  picked  up  his  hat  and  canted  it  over  his  face. 
"Get  back  here  as  early  as  five  o'clock,"  he  said,  from 
under  its  brim. 

They  were  away  in  the  farmer's  carryall  at  that  hour, 
after  a  supper  of  bread-and-milk. 

In  the  edge  of  the  village  of  Burnside  the  Duke  or 
dered  a  halt,  and  stepped  down  from  the  carriage.  The 
evening  had  settled  in  and  it  was  dark  under  the  elms. 

"  Here's  five  dollars,  brother.  You've  used  us  all 
right,  and  now  so  long  to  you." 

"But  I  hain't  got  you  to  nowhere  yet!"  protested  the 
farmer.  He  had  finally  decided  in  his  own  mind  that 
these  were  railroad  managers  planning  projects,  with  an 
eye  on  his  own  farm.  He  wanted  to  carry  them  where 
he  could  exhibit  them  to  some  one  who  could  inform 
him. 

But  the  Duke  promptly  drew  Harlan  along  into  the 
shadows,  and  a  farmer  hampered  with  a  two-seated 
carriage  is  not  equipped  for  the  trail.  They  heard  the 
complaining  squeal  of  iron  against  iron  as  he  turned  to 
go  back  home. 

"We've  come  here  to  call  on  a  man,"  stated  the  Duke, 
after  they  had  walked  for  a  little  time. 

"On  ex-Governor  Waymouth,  I  suppose,"  Harlan 
suggested,  quietly. 

The  old  man  chuckled. 

"How  long  have  you  been  suspecting  that?" 

"Ever  since  I  heard  Burnside  mentioned,  of  course." 

"  Good !  You  guessed  and  kept  still  about  it.  You've 
got  the  makings  of  a  politician,  and  you  are  learning 

120 


A    MAN    FROM    THE    SHADOWS 

fast.  Now  what  do  you  suppose  I'm  sneaking  up  on 
Varden  Waymouth  in  this  way  for?" 

"You  said  I'd  see  for  myself  when  the  time  came. 
I'm  in  no  hurry,  grandfather." 

The  Duke  patted  Harlan's  shoulder.  "  You're  one 
of  my  kind,  that's  sure,  boy.  I  haven't  got  to  put  any 
patent  time-lock  onto  your  tongue.  And  I  can't  say 
that  of  many  chaps  in  this  State.  You're  a  safe  man  to 
have  along.  Come  on!" 

The  house  was  back  from  the  street  a  bit — a  modest 
mansion  of  brick,  dignifiedly  old.  Tall  twin  columns 
flanked  the  front  door  and  supported  the  roof  of  the 
porch.  Harlan  had  never  seen  the  residence  of  General 
Waymouth  before,  but  that  exterior  seemed  fitted  to 
the  man,  such  as  he  knew  him  to  be. 

He  admitted  them  himself,  when  they  had  waited 
a  few  moments  after  sounding  alarm  with  the  ancient 
knocker.  Framed  in  the  door,  he  was  a  picturesque 
figure.  His  abundant  white  hair  hung  straight  down 
over  his  ears,  and  curled  outward  at  the  ends;  his  short 
beard  was  snowy,  but  there  was  healthful  ruddiness  on 
his  face,  and  though  his  figure,  tall  above  the  average, 
stooped  a  bit,  he  walked  briskly  ahead  of  them  into  the 
library,  crying  delighted  welcome  over  his  shoulder. 
His  meeting  with  Thelismer  Thornton  had  been  almost 
an  embrace. 

"  And  this  boosting  big  chap  is  Harlan — my  grand- 
baby,  Yard !  Guess  you  used  to  see  him  at  '  The  Bar 
racks'  when  he  was  smaller.  Since  then  he's  been  try 
ing  to  outgrow  one  of  our  spruce- trees." 

The  ex-Governor  gave  Harlan  his  left  hand.  The 
empty  sleeve  of  the  right  arm  was  pinned  to  the  shoulder. 

"The  old  Yankee  stock  doesn't  need  a  step-ladder 
to  stand  on  to  light  the  moon,  so  they  used  to  say." 

He  rolled  chairs  close  to  each  other  and  urged  them  to 
sit,  with  the  anxious  hospitality  of  the  old  man  who 

121 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

has  grown  to  prize  the  narrowing  circle  of  his  inti 
mates. 

"Smoke,  Thelismer,"  he  pleaded.  "Stretch  out  and 
smoke.  I  always  like  to  see  you  smoke.  You  take  so 
much  comfort.  I  sometimes  wish  I'd  learned  to  smoke. 
Old  age  gets  lonely  once  in  a  while.  Perhaps  a  good 
cigar  might  be  a  consolation." 

"So  you  do  get  lonesome  sometimes,  Yard?"  inquired 
the  Duke. 

"  It's  a  lonesome  age  when  you're  eighty,  comrade. 
You  probably  find  it  so  yourself.  There  are  so  few  of 
one's  old  friends  that  live  to  be  eighty." 

Then  they  fell  into  discourse,  eager,  wistful  reminis 
cences  such  as  come  to  the  lips  of  old  friends  who  meet 
infrequently.  The  young  man,  sitting  close  in  the  circle, 
listened  appreciatively.  This  courtly  old  soldier,  law 
yer,  Governor,  and  kindly  gentleman  had  been  to  him 
since  boyhood,  as  he  had  to  the  understanding  youth  of 
his  State,  an  ideal  knight  of  the  old  regime.  And  so  the 
hours  slipped  past,  and  he  sat  listening. 

The  calm  night  outside  was  breathlessly  still,  except 
for  the  drone  of  insects  at  the  screens,  attracted  by  the 
glow  of  the  library  lamp.  A  steeple  clock  clanged  its 
ten  sonorous  strokes,  and  still  the  old  men  chatted  on, 
and  the  Duke  had  not  hinted  at  his  errand. 

The  General  suddenly  remembered  that  he  had  in  the 
cellar  some  home-made  wine,  and  he  asked  the  young 
man  to  come  with  him,  as  lamp-bearer. 

"The  good  wife  would  have  thought  of  that  little 
touch  of  hospitality  long  ago,  my  son,"  he  said,  as  they 
walked  down  the  stairs,  "but  a  widower's  house  with 
grouchy  hired  help  makes  old  age  still  more  lonely." 

On  their  return  they  found  the  Duke,  feet  extended, 
head  tipped  back,  eyes  on  the  ceiling.  He  was  deep  in 
thought,  and  told  Harlan  to  place  his  glass  on  the  chair's 
arm. 


A    MAN    FROM    THE    SHADOWS 

"Varden,"  he  said,  "eighty  isn't  old,  not  for  a  man 
like  you;  and  it  shouldn't  be  lonely,  that  age.  I'm  still 
older,  and  I  propose  to  wear  out  instead  of  rust  out." 

"I  don't  feel  rusty,  exactly,"  returned  the  General, 
smiling  into  his  glass.  "  But  when  I  think  of  all  the 
marches,  Thelismer,  of  the  campaigns,  the  heart 
breaking  struggles  of  the  war — of  all  the  cases  won  and 
cases  lost,  the  nights  of  study  and  days  of  labor  in  the 
law — the  fuss  and  fury  of  politics — of  all  the  years  be 
hind  me,  I  feel  as  though  I'd  like  to  be  used  as  my  father 
used  his  old  boots:  Before  he  took  his  bed  for  the  last 
time  he  went  up  into  the  garret  of  the  old  farm-house 
and  laid  his  boots  there  on  their  sides.  '  Let  'em  lie 
down,  now,  and  rest,'  he  said.  And  I've  never  allowed 
them  to  be  disturbed." 

The  Duke  still  stared  at  the  ceiling. 

"Varden,  you  and  I  have  known  each  other  so  long 
that  you  don't  need  as  much  talk  from  me  as  you  would 
from  a  stranger.  When  I've  asked  a  thing  from  you  in 
the  past  I  didn't  have  to  sit  down  and  talk  to  you  an 
hour  about  the  reasons  why  I  wanted  it.  You  under 
stood  that  I  had  a  good  reason  for  asking.  I'm  going 
to  ask  just  one  more  thing  from  you  in  this  life.  I'm 
going  to  ask  it  straight  from  the  shoulder.  You  and  I 
don't  need  to  beat  about  the  bush  with  each  other.  I 
want  you  to  say  'yes,'  for  if  you  don't  you're  abandon 
ing  our  old  State  as  though  she  were  a  widow  headed 
for  the  almshouse." 

Thornton  leaned  forward,  grasped  his  glass  and  drain 
ed  it  at  a  gulp,  and  then  looked  the  amazed  General 
squarely  in  the  eyes. 

"  You're  going  to  be  nominated  as  Governor  of  this 
State  in  the  next  convention,  and  you've  got  to  accept," 
he  declared.  "Now  hold  on!  Just  as  you  understand 
that  I've  got  good  reasons  for  asking  you  to  do  this, 
just  so  I  understand  all  that  you're  going  to  say  in  ob- 

123 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

jection.  I  discount  all  your  objections  in  advance.  I 
know  you  haven't  lost  run  of  affairs  in  this  State — you 
know  all  the  mix-up  the  party  is  in  right  now.  They're 
going  to  beat  Dave  Everett  in  convention,  General,  just 
as  sure  as  the  devil  can't  freeze  his  own  ice.  It's  going 
to  be  'Seventy  -  two  all  over  again.  People  gone  crazy 
for  a  change  and  jumping  the  wrong  way,  like  grass 
hoppers  in  front  of  a  mowing  machine.  Spinney  means 
the  whole  rotten  thing  over  again — State  treasury  looted, 
tax  rate  reduced  to  get  a  popular  hoorah,  a  floating  debt 
that  will  make  us  stagger  and  keep  enterprise  out  of  this 
State  for  ten  years,  petty  graft  in  every  State  office, 
and  every  strap  on  the  party  nag  busted  from  snaffle 
to  crupper.  Now  I  want  to  ask  you  one  question:  Do 
you  want  Arba  Spinney  for  the  next  Governor  of  this 
State — sitting  in  the  chair  that  you  honored?  You 
know  him!  You've  heard  his  mouth  go.  You  under 
stand  his  calibre.  Do  you  want  him?" 

"No,"  admitted  General  Waymouth. 

"  Well,  you're  going  to  get  him  if  you  don't  accept  that 
nomination.  You're  going  to  get  him,  blab-mouth, 
mob -rule,  mortification,  and  merry  hell  —  the  whole 
bagful!  Do  you  want  that  for  this  State,  Yard?" 

"Our  State  can't  afford  to  have  such  a  man,"  agreed 
General  Waymouth,  "but — 

"  I'd,  myself,  rather  see  a  Democrat  win  at  the  polls!" 
shouted  Thornton.  "  But  the  Democrat  that  they've 
got  in  line  is  worse  than  Spinney.  It's  a  popocratic 
year,  and  they're  all  playing  that  game.  But  they 
can't  overcome  our  natural  plurality,  Varden.  It  means 
Spinney  if  he  goes  to  the  polls!  It's  up  to  you  to  stop 
him.  You've  got  to  do  it!" 

The  General  rose  and  walked  around  the  room.  His 
shoulders  were  stooped  a  bit  more.  Then  he  came  and 
put  his  hand  on  Thelismer's  shoulder. 

"Your  faith  in  what  I  am  and  what  I  might  do  is 

124 


A    MAN    FROM    THE    SHADOWS 

worthy  of  you,  my  old  comrade,  even  if  it  exalts  my  poor 
powers  too  much.  And  I  thank  you,  Thelismer.  But 
I  know  what  I  am.  I'm  only  a  stranded  old  man. 
The  younger  generation  will  not  think  as  you  do.  Go 
and  find  some  good  man  there.  I'm  too  weary,  Thelis 
mer,  too  old  and  too  weary — and  almost  forgotten. 
Find  another  man!" 

"  What's  that  ?  Find  a  man  for  Governor  of  this  State, 
groom  him,  work  him  out,  score  him  down  and  shove 
him  under  the  wire  of  State  Convention  a  winner  inside 
of  two  weeks?  Varden,  you  know  politics  better  than 
that!  Yon  forgotten  by  the  younger  generation  of  this 
State?  Harlan,  what  have  you  to  say  to  that?" 

The  young  man  stood  up.  He  had  listened  well  and 
listened  long  that  evening.  In  the  presence  of  this 
gracious  old  knight  of  the  heroic  days  of  history  he  had 
felt  his  heart  swelling  as  he  remembered  the  record  that 
all  men  of  his  State  knew. 

The  fervor  of  his  admiration  showed  so  plainly  in  his 
glistening  eyes  that  General  Waymouth  was  touched, 
and  waited  indulgently. 

"  General,  it's  only  because  my  grandfather  is  your  old 
friend  and  has  commanded  me  that  I  dare  to  speak.  I 
simply  have  a  hope.  It  has  become  dear  to  me.  I'm 
hoping  for  a  privilege.  I  honestly  believe  that  outside 
of  all  party  preferences  there  are  thousands  of  young 
men  in  this  State  who  will  feel  proud  to  have  that  same 
privilege — will  esteem  it  one  of  the  honors  of  their  lives. 
Their  fathers  had  the  same  honor.  And  that's  to  go  to 
the  polls  and  cast  a  ballot  for  Gen.  Varden  Waymouth. 
It  will  make  politics  seem  worth  while  to  us,  sir." 

"Good!"  ejaculated  the  Duke.  "You're  hearing  the 
voice  of  the  young  men  of  this  State  now,  Varden." 
He  stood  up.  "  Here's  my  boy  for  your  service.  He'll 
be  in  the  next  legislature.  Use  him.  Depend  on  him. 
You're  old — you've  earned  your  rest.  I  know  it.  But 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

here's  a  loud  call  for  a  sacrifice.  This  boy  and  such  as 
he  can  lift  a  lot  of  the  load.  Varden,  give  me  your 
hand.  Say  that  you'll  do  it!" 

"Let's  sit  down  a  moment,"  said  the  General,  solemn 
gentleness  in  his  tone.  "  I  have  something  that  it's  in 
my  heart  to  say." 

He  drew  his  chair  even  closer  to  them.  They  waited 
a  few  moments  for  him  to  speak.  In  that  room  with  its 
dignity  of  ancient  things,  with  the  silence  of  the  summer 
night  surrounding,  that  waiting  was  impressive.  Harlan 
felt  the  thrill  of  it.  Even  his  grandfather  was  gravely 
anxious.  The  General  leaned  forward  and  put  his  thin 
hand  on  the  elder  Thornton's  knee. 

"Thelismer,  you  yourself  link  the  past  with  the 
present,  so  far  as  the  politics  of  this  State  go.  You 
link  them  even  more  than  I  do,  for  you  are  active  in  the 
present.  You  have  been  a  strong  man — you  are  strong 
to-day.  But  I  want  to  say  to  you,  and  this  is  as  friend 
to  friend,  you  haven't  always  used  that  strength  right. 
I  know  what  reply  you'd  make  to  that.  We've  talked 
it  all  over  many  times.  You  say  that  you've  had  to 
play  the  game.  That's  right.  And  I've  played  it  my 
self,  too.  But  in  the  years  since  then,  while  I've  sat  at 
one  side  of  the  arena  and  looked  on,  I've  had  a  chance 
to  meditate  and  a  chance  to  observe.  I  don't  think 
matters  have  been  running  right  in  this  State — and  now 
I'm  not  speaking  of  Arba  Spinney  or  his  ilk.  You  come 
to  me  to-night  and  you  ask  me  to  be  the  Governor  of  this 
State  once  more.  You  want  me  to  come  back  into  the 
game.  You  ask  me  to  appeal  to  the  suffrage  of  the  young 
men  who  admire  what  little  I've  accomplished.  I  want 
to  warn  you.  I  may  be  putting  it  too  strong  when  I 
call  it  a  warning.  I  have  some  ideals  to-day.  You  may 
not  find  them  to  your  liking  in  politics." 

"  I'm  willing  to  trust  in  your  good  judgment  and  your 
sense  of  what  is  square  for  all  concerned,"  protested  the 

126 


A    MAN    FROM    THE    SHADOWS 

Duke,  stoutly.     "  In  the  hot  old  days  I  was  hot  with  the 
rest,  Vard.     I've  mellowed  some  since." 

"  You  may  not  find  me  a  safe  man,  Thelismer.  I  shall 
come  back  out  of  the  shadows  with  a  firm  resolve  to 
merit  the  approval  of  the  young  men  of  this  State — and 
the  young  men  see  more  clearly  than  their  fathers  did." 

"I'm  not  here  to-night  with  bridle  or  bit  or  halter, 
Varden.  We  need  you.  The  party  has  got  to  have 
you.  I  know  what  your  name  will  accomplish  in  that 
convention.  You  shall  be  Governor  of  this  State  with 
out  making  pledge  or  promise.  Will  you  stand?" 

"  I  ask  you  again,  Thelismer,  if  there  is  no  other  way  ?" 

"  Any  other  way  means  Spinney  and  mob  rule." 

General  Waymouth  turned  to  Harlan.  "  Go  out  and 
tell  the  honest  young  men  of  this  State  that  I  will  try 
to  satisfy  their  ideals.  That's  the  only  pledge  I'll  give. 
I'm  afraid  I  haven't  any  promise  for  the  old  machine, 
Thelismer."  He  smiled. 

"We  don't  need  any,"  returned  the  Duke,  briskly. 
"  We  know  Vard  Waymouth.  But  there's  one  pledge 
I  do  want  from  you.  This  whole  thing  is  to  be  left  in 
my  hands  so  far  as  announcement  goes.  My  plan  of 
campaign  makes  that  much  necessary.  We  don't 
want  to  flush  that  bunch  of  birds  till  we  can  give  'em 
both  barrels." 

"  I  consent.  I'll  live  in  the  lingering  hope  that  at  the 
last  moment  you'll  find  I  won't  be  needed." 

He  rose  and  gave  his  hand  to  each  in  turn,  bringing 
them  to  their  feet. 

"  Now  for  bed.    Of  course,  you'll  remain  here  the  night." 

"No,"  declared  Thornton,  decisively.  "Out  o'  here 
on  the  midnight!  I  want  to  dodge  out  of  Burnside  in 
the  dark.  We'll  walk  down  to  the  station  now.  It's 
settled.  I'll  keep  you  posted." 

At  the  door  the  General  gave  Harlan  the  last  word, 
grasping  his  hand  again. 

127 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  You  brought  me  a  message  from  the  young  men  that 
touched  me." 

"  I  spoke  for  myself,  but  I  believe  that  all  of  them 
would  like  to  have  the  same  opportunity  that  1  had," 
faltered  Harlan.  "  I  know  they  would.  Will  you  let 
us  come  to  you  at  the  right  time  and  make  it  plain?" 

"  I  shall  depend  upon  you  in  a  great  many  ways  in 
the  months  to  come.  You  know  it's  to  be  a  young  man's 
administration  by  an  old  man  made  young  again.  I'm 
proud  of  my  first  volunteer!" 

"He's  a  good  boy,  and  he's  got  the  makings  in  him," 
declared  the  Duke. 

"  I've  been  too  long  with  men  not  to  appreciate  a  good 
chief  of  staff  when  I  see  him,"  laughed  the  General. 

Framed  in  the  big  door,  with  the  dim  glow  of  light 
behind  him,  he  watched  them  depart. 

The  Duke  walked  in  the  far  shadows  of  the  station 
platform  in  silence,  smoking,  until  the  train  whistled. 

"  Bub,  you  remember  that  I  told  you  I'd  put  you  in 
right,"  he  said,  climbing  the  car  steps.  "Now  follow 
your  hand." 

But  Harlan  Thornton,  fresh  from  that  presence,  un 
derstood  that  he  had  pledged  a  loyalty  deeper  than  the 
loyalty  of  mere  politics  or  preferment. 


CHAPTER  XII 


DEALS    AND    IDEALS 

HERE  was  no  one  in  the  smoking-room 
of  the  car,  so  the  Duke  discovered  with 
relief.  It  was  late,  and  the  passengers 
were  in  their  berths.  There  was  no  one 
to  spy,  ask  questions,  or  guess. 

"Complete!"  he  grunted,  satisfiedly,  as 
he  sat  down.  "  We've  come  through  with  the  job  in 
good  shape,  Harlan.  It  '11  have  to  be  a  mind-reader 
that  finds  out  what  I've  put  up  to-day." 

He  swung  his  feet  upon  the  seat  opposite  and  sighed. 
"  I'm  a  pretty  old  man  to  be  tearing  'round  nights  in 
this  fashion,  bub,  but  I  feel  younger  by  twenty  years 
just  this  minute.  Now  I  didn't  tell  you  my  plans  this 
morning.  Reckoned  I'd  wait  till  I  had  a  clear  view 
ahead.  I've  got  it  now.  I'll  wire  ahead  to  the  junction 
for  our  baggage  to  be  brought  from  the  hotel  and  put 
on  board  this  train.  We'll  stay  on.  State  capital  next. 
Down  to  Luke's  place.  We'll  stay  there  till  State  Con 
vention.  Finger  right  on  the  pulse  after  this." 

He  called  the  porter  and  arranged  for  his  berths,  and 
ordered  the  telegram  sent  from  the  next  station. 

He  began  leisurely  to  unfasten  his  necktie   and  col 
lar. 

"  Got  to  tell  Luke,  you  know.  A  close  corporation  of 
four — that's  enough  to  know  it.  Can't  trust  the  rest. 
We'll  let  'em  keep  their  old  political  hen  setting  on  their 
We'll  hatch  the  good  egg  in  our  own  nest. 
129 


china  egg. 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Then  for  a  glorious  old  cackle !     Yard  Waymouth  will  be 
the  next  Governor  of  this  State!     Sure!" 

"And  this  State  will  have  the  right  man  on  the  job 
with  him  as  Governor!"  cried  the  young  man,  enthusias 
tically.  "  I'm  proud  of  what  you  did  to-night,  grand 
father.  I  don't  believe  he  would  have  listened  to  any 
one  else." 

"Friendship,  comradeship,  mean  something  when  you 
get  old,  my  boy." 

"  I  hope  they'll  all  know  who  did  it  when  the  time 
comes  right.  Some  of  the  men  who  have  been  growling 
about  you  behind  your  back  will  have  their  mouths  shut 
for  them." 

"  You've  been  hearing  the  old  man  cussed  thoroughly 
and  scientifically,  eh?"  drawled  the  Duke.  He  squinted, 
quizzically.  "  Well,  a  man  who  stays  in  politics  fifty 
years  and  doesn't  make  enemies,  stays  too  close  to  the 
ground  to  be  worth  anything.  Good,  healthy,  vigorous 
enemies  are  a  compliment." 

"  I  wonder  whether  his  party  will  say  that  when  General 
Waymouth  starts  out  in  his  reforms." 

"What  reforms?"  demanded  the  old  man,  tugging 
off  his  collar. 

"  You  heard  what  he  said — about  what  he  intended 
to  do — the  warning,  as  he  called  it." 

Thornton  looked  at  his  grandson  serenely  and  with 
a  glint  of  humor  in  his  eyes. 

"  You  don't  have  any  idea,  do  you,  that  Yard  Way- 
mouth  is  going  to  play  politics  with  sugar-plums  instead 
of  with  the  chips  he  finds  on  the  table?  Get  your  wis 
dom  teeth  cut,  young  chap.  That's  another  branch  of 
the  science  for  you  to  learn." 

Harlan  protested,  his  loyalty  a  bit  shocked. 

"  I  believe  that  General  Waymouth  meant  what  he 
said." 

"  Well,  what  did  he  say  ?" 

130 


DEALS    AND    IDEALS 

"  You  know  what  he  said.  I  saw  you  listening  pretty 
closely,  grandfather.  He  intends  a  square  deal  for  this 
State.  I  may  be  young,  and  I  probably  don't  under 
stand  politics,  but  I  know  an  honest  gentleman  when  I 
see  one." 

"  My  boy,  there's  no  question  of  dishonesty  here. 
Don't  pick  up  any  of  the  patter  that  the  demagogues 
are  babbling — and  they  don't  know  just  what  they  mean 
themselves,  He  is  an  honest  man.  Have  I  known  him 
all  my  life  without  finding  that  out?  But  he  isn't  going 
to  start  out  and  clinch  any  reputation  for  honesty  by 
turning  his  back  on  his  own  party  and  its  interests— not 
for  the  sake  of  having  the  cheap  demagogues  of  the  other 
side  pat  him  on  the  back  and  pick  his  pockets  at  the 
same  time.  He  knows  politics  too  well.  But  we  won't 
sit  up  here  to-night  and  discuss  that.  Keep  your  faith 
in  him.  He's  worth  it." 

With  his  coat  on  his  arm  he  started  for  his  berth. 

"The  idea  is,  then,  the  party  is  going  to  make  him 
stand  first  of  all  for  things  that  will  help  the  party, 
without  much  regard  for  what  will  help  the  people  of 
this  State  as  a  whole?  That's  politics  according  to  the 
code,  is  it,  grandfather?" 

"That's  politics,  my  boy,"  stated  the  Duke  with 
decision.  "  Once  in  a  while  you  find  a  fellow  splitting 
off  and  trying  to  play  it  different,  but  he  doesn't  last. 
Why  the  devil  should  he  ?  It's  his  party,  isn't  it,  that 
puts  him  on  the  job?" 

"  It's  the  majority  of  the  people  that  do  it,  if  he's 
elected." 

"Don't  get  fooled  on  this  'people'  idea,  Harlan.  The 
people  are  no  good  without  organization — and  organiza 
tion  is  the  party.  I  don't  want  to  discourage  you,  son. 
You'll  see  some  opportunities  where  you  can  grab  in 
and  turn  a  trick  for  the  general  good  of  all  hands.  But 
you  can't  dump  your  friends.  You've  got  to  stand  by 
10  131 


TH  E    RAMRODDERS 

your  own  party  first.  You  do  anything  else,  and  you'll 
simply  get  the  reputation  of  being  a  kicker  and  an  in 
surgent.  And  then  you  can't  spin  a  thread.  Your 
own  party  doesn't  want  you  and  the  other  side  is  afraid 
of  you.  Ideals  are  blasted  good  in  their  way,  but  in 
politics  cut  out  the  I  and  attend  to  the  deals.  It's  the 
only  way  you'll  get  anywhere." 

Harlan  sat  alone  for  a  while  and  thought.  Rebellion 
seethed  in  him.  But  it  was  rebellion  against  something 
vague — protest  that  was  more  instinct  than  actual  un 
derstanding.  He  still  lacked  the  prick  of  party  en 
thusiasm;  party,  as  he  had  seen  its  operations,  stood  for 
some  pretty  sordid  actualities.  One  thing  comforted 
him:  he  had  not  lost  his  faith  in  General  Waymouth. 
His  grandfather's  cynicism  had  not  destroyed  that. 
He  realized  that  his  youth  and  his  lack  of  experience 
would  make  him  a  very  humble  cog  in  the  legislative 
machinery.  But  he  had  youth  and  high  hopes,  and  his 
creed  from  boyhood  had  been  to  do  everything  that  he 
had  to  do  resolutely  and  to  the  full  measure  of  his  ability. 

When  he  looked  at  his  watch  he  decided  that  he  would 
not  go  to  his  berth.  The  train  would  reach  the  State 
capital  shortly  after  four  in  the  morning.  He  dozed  in 
his  seat,  the  grateful  breath  of  the  summer  night  fanning 
his  face  through  the  screen.  The  Duke  found  him  there, 
appearing  as  he  had  departed,  his  coat  on  his  arm,  his 
collar  in  his  hand.  He  was  full  of  the  briskness  of  the 
dawn  in  spite  of  his  short  rations  of  sleep. 

"  You  mustn't  think  because  you've  found  sins  in  the 
party  that  you've  been  picked  out  for  the  atonement, 
boy,"  he  chided,  jocosely.  "  Get  your  sleep — always  get 
your  sleep.  I  wouldn't  have  been  alive  to-day  if  I'd  been 
kept  awake  by  worry  and  wonder." 

A  cab  took  their  luggage  to  the  hotel.  They  walked 
up  the  hill.  It  was  the  old  man's  suggestion. 

"It  '11  do  us  good.  This  air  beats  any  cocktail  you 

132 


DEALS    AND    IDEALS 

can  get  over  Luke's  bar — and  they  serve  as  good  a  one 
as  you'll  get  anywhere,  even  if  this  is  a  prohibition 
State/' 

"  Wasn't  it  Governor  Waymouth  who  signed  the  first 
prohibition  bill  in  this  State?"  asked  Harlan. 

"Still  dwelling  on  visions  of  reform,  eh?"  inquired  his 
grandfather,  smiling  broadly.  He  did  not  reply  im 
mediately.  He  stepped  ahead,  for  they  were  obliged 
to  walk  in  single  file  past  a  man  who  was  sweeping  saw 
dust  across  the  sidewalk.  In  the  windows  that  flanked 
the  open  doors  of  his  shop  dusty  cigar  boxes  were  piled. 
The  shelves  within  were  empty.  Harlan  recognized 
the  nature  of  the  establishment.  It  was  a  grog-shop 
in  its  partial  disguise.  He  got  the  odor  of  stale  liquors 
from  the  open  door  as  he  passed. 

"  I  was  present  when  he  signed  it,"  said  the  Duke,  as 
soon  as  they  were  walking  side  by  side  once  more. 
"  Something  had  to  be  done  politically  with  the  Wash- 
ingtonian  movement,  you  know;  it  had  cut  the  cranks 
out  of  the  main  herd.  You'd  think,  nowadays,  to  hear 
some  of  the  things  that  are  said  about  conditions  in  the 
old  times,  that  every  man  in  this  State  picked  up  his  rum- 
bottle  and  pipe  and  threw  'em  to  Tophet  and  got  onto  the 
wagon.  You  weren't  born  then.  Let  me  tell  you  how 
it  really  happened.  It  was  mostly  politics.  The  dis 
organized  mob  of  prohibitionists  didn't  do  it — it  was  our 
party.  We  needed  the  cranks  to  swing  the  balance  of 
power.  They  were  all  herded,  ready  to  follow  the  bell. 
Needed  a  shepherd.  Didn't  know  which  one  of  the  old 
parties  to  run  to.  It's  a  crime  in  politics  not  to  grab  in 
a  bunch  of  the  unbranded  when  it's  that  size.  We  put 
prohibition  into  the  platform  and  carried  the  election. 
Then  the  boys  went  to  the  Governor  and  told  him, 
privately,  that  they  really  didn't  mean  it,  and  framed  it 
up  that  they'd  pass  the  bill  in  the  legislature  all  right 
and  then  he'd  veto  it — and  the  party  would  be  saved, 

133 


and  he  wouldn't  be  hurt,  because  every  one  knew  that 
he  couldn't  be  accused  of  acting  in  the  interests  of  the 
rumsellers,  but  only  stood  on  the  constitutional  law 
ground — and  there  was  great  talk  those  days,  son,  of 
personal  liberty  and  inherent  rights.  But  Yard  picked 
up  his  pen  and  told  us  he  wasn't  much  of  a  hand  for 
playing  practical  jokes  on  the  people.  He  signed  it. 
And  he  was  a  license  man,  at  that,  those  days.  Guess 
he  is  now." 

"  I  don't  see  how  you  can  say  he  has  played  politics 
— not  after  he  stood  out  like  that." 

Thelismer  Thornton  laughed  silently.  They  were 
half-way  up  the  long  hill.  The  bland  morning  was 
already  growing  warm.  The  old  man  stopped  for  a 
moment,  hat  off,  under  a  dewy  maple. 

"  Bub,  do  you  think  Yard  Waymouth,  lawyer  that  he 
is,  didn't  know  just  about  how  much  that  act  would 
amount  to  after  it  got  to  operating  ?  About  all  it  did  was 
to  proclaim  the  rum  business  contraband.  No  teeth, 
no  claws,  not  much  machinery  for  enforcement — and 
public  sentiment  cussing  it,  after  it  began  to  hit  men  in 
dividually.  Reform  in  politics  is  popular  just  so  long 
as  it  doesn't  hit  individuals." 

"There's  teeth  enough  in  the  law  now,"  remarked 
Harlan. 

"Oh,  it's  easier  to  put  'em  in  than  it  is  to  fight  the 
mouths  of  the  professional  ramrodders  who  come  down 
to  the  legislature.  We  put  in  the  teeth  right  along  and 
leave  off  the  enforcement  muscle.  The  old  thing  can't 
chaw !  Then  the  ramrodders  have  got  the  law  to  hoorah 
about  and  read  over  in  the  parlor,  and  they'll  go  right 
past  such  a  place  as  we  saw  down  the  street  there  and  not 
know  it's  a  rumshop.  After  they  get  all  the  law  they 
ask  for,  it's  a  part  of  their  game  to  say  that  the  rum- 
shops  aren't  doing  business.  They're  the  kind  that  be 
lieve  that  just  having  the  law  makes  every  one  good— 


DEALS    AND    IDEALS 

they  don't  want  to  go  back  on  their  own  scheme.  Come 
along!"  He  went  out  into  the  sunshine.  "I  don't  like 
to  get  talking  prohibition.  The  play  is  not  to  talk  it. 
It  runs  best  when  you  don't  talk  about  it.  It's  running 
good  now.  Saloons  open,  and  all  the  prohibitory  law- 
frills  the  old  fuss-budgets  can  crochet  and  hang  onto  the 
original  bush!  Both  sides  satisfied!" 

"  It  may  be  good  politics — it  may  seem  all  right  to 
you,  because  you  were  in  the  thing  from  the  start  and 
saw  how  the  tricks  had  to  be  played,"  grumbled  the 
young  man.  "  But  I  haven't  had  that  kind  of  training. 
I've  been  brought  up  in  business,  grandfather.  And 
a  State  that  will  do  what  this  State  is  doing  now — I'm 
not  saying  who's  at  fault — but  the  State  that  will  handle 
a  law  in  this  way  is  a  blackleg.  I  believe  in  General 
Waymouth.  I  believe  he's  got  something  up  his  sleeve 
in  the  way  of  real  reform.  I  believe  he  meant  what  he 
said.  I  don't  want  to  see  you  hurt  personally  in  your 
plans,  grandfather,  but  I  want  to  tell  you  frankly  I'm 
with  the  other  side  in  this  thing." 

The  Duke  glanced  at  him  inquiringly. 

"  I  mean,  politics  or  no  politics,  I  want  to  see  a  law 
enforced  so  long  as  it's  a  law.  If  a  party  cannot  hold 
together  and  keep  on  top  with  any  other  system,  then 
the  party  is  'in'  wrong.  I  don't  believe  General  Way- 
mouth  intends  to  straddle.  He'll  enforce  the  law." 

"And  kill  his  party?"  inquired  the  old  man,  sarcas 
tically.  "  Oh  no,  my  boy.  The  party  has  looked  out 
for  that.  It  isn't  taking  any  chances  with  a  man  who 
might  get  morally  rambunctious.  The  Governor  of  this 
State  hasn't  anything  to  do  with  enforcing  the  prohibi 
tory  law.  We've  kept  all  the  clubs  out  of  his  hands. 
When  the  W.  C.  T.  U.  converted  old  Governor  Levett, 
he  got  ambitious  and  tried  it  on.  And  the  only  thing 
he  found  he  could  do  was  to  issue  a  proclamation  to  the 
sheriffs  'to  do  their  duty.'  The  most  of  'em  framed  it 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

and  hung  it  up  in  their  offices ;  it  was  too  good  a  joke  to 
keep  hid," 

They  walked  on  in  silence.  Harlan  did  not  find  it 
easy  to  continue  that  line  of  talk.  His  deameanor  did 
not  accord  with  the  fair  face  of  the  morning.  But  the 
old  man  sauntered  on  under  the  trees,  plainly  contented 
with  the  world  and  all  that  was  in  it. 

"  Let's  see,  you  haven't  met  Madeleine,  Luke's  girl, 
since  she  was  little,  have  you?"  he  inquired,  stealing  one 
of  his  shrewd  side  glances  at  his  grandson. 

Harlan  was  occupied  with  his  own  thoughts  and  shook 
his  head. 

"  I  was  thinking  she'd  been  away  at  school  whenever 
you've  been  down  here  with  me.  Beautiful  girl,  my 
boy.  Brains,  too.  Polish  up  your  thoughts.  These 
college  girls  are  pretty  bright,  you  know." 

"I  don't  think  she  will  notice  whether  I've  got  any 
thoughts  or  not,"  replied  the  young  man,  sourly.  "  She 
won't  pay  much  attention  to  a  woodsman — not  that  kind 
of  a  girl." 

"What  kind  of  a  girl?" 

"One  that's  full  of  society  notions  and  college  airs. 
I  know  the  kind.  Unless  a  fellow  has  wasted  about 
half  his  life  in  dancing  and  loafing  around  summer 
resorts  they  treat  him  as  though  he  were  a  cross  between 
an  Eskimo  and  a  Fiji.  Life  is  too  short  to  play  poodle 
for  girls  of  that  sort." 

"Well,  you  are  certainly  on  the  mourners'  bench  to 
day,  front  row  and  an  end  seat,"  said  the  old  man, 
disgustedly.  "  You'd  better  go  up  and  take  a  nap  till 
breakfast-time,  and  use  sleep,  soap,  a  razor,  and  common 
sense  and  smooth  yourself  off.  I  reckon  I  haven't  got 
you  out  of  those  woods  any  too  quick." 

Only  the  earliest  birds  of  the  hostelry  roost  were 
about  the  big  house  at  that  hour.  The  new  arrivals 
dodged  scrub-women  and  sweepers  in  the  office  and  on 

136 


DEALS    AND    IDEALS 

the  stairs,  and  went  to  their  rooms.  The  Duke,  leaving 
his  grandson  at  his  bedroom  door,  suggested  a  bit  stiffly 
that  he  would  "  call  around  about  eight  o'clock  and  open 
the  den  and  lead  him  down  to  a  little  raw  meat,  unless 
he  smoothed  up  his  manners  and  his  appetite  in  the 
mean  time." 


CHAPTER  XIII 


THE  DUKE  S  DOUBLE  CAMPAIGN 

RESSON  came  in  with  the  Duke  at  eight 
o'clock,  bringing  cordial  morning  greet 
ings  to  Harlan's  room. 

The  old  man  found  his  grandson  much 
improved,  both  in  spirits  and  garb.  In 
his  fresh,  cool,  summer  gray,  erect,  stal 
wart,  and  clear-eyed,  he  won  a  grunt  of  approval  from 
his  mentor. 

"There's  nothing  like  being  young,  Luke!  I  was  just 
telling  you  that  the  boy  was  getting  into  the  dumps — 
bound  to  study  all  the  seams  before  he  put  the  coat  on. 
But  the  world  looks  better  now,  doesn't  it,  son?" 

"It's  the  fit  of  the  coat  that  counts  in  politics,"  ob 
served  the  chairman,  sagely.  "  And  the  one  that  was 
built  last  night  fits  like  the  paper  on  the  wall.  Don't 
bother  with  the  seams,  Harlan.  The  lining  covers 
'em." 

"Presson  likes  the  frame-up,  Harlan,"  said  the  Duke, 
smiling  broadly.  "  He  isn't  even  jealous  because  I 
thought  of  it  first." 

"Who  else  could  have  pulled  it  off  as  you  have, 
Thelismer?  It  would  take  more  than  straight  politics 
to  get  Vard  Waymouth  out  of  his  den.  And  I  could 
have  offered  only  politics." 

With  an  arm  about  each  he  pushed  them  to  the  door, 
saying  that  his  wife  and  daughter  were  waiting  below. 
When  Harlan  turned  from  his  respectful  greeting  of 

138 


THE    DUKE'S    DOUBLE    CAMPAIGN 

the  mother,  whom  he  knew,  he  found  Miss  Presson 
looking  at  him  with  frank  and  smiling  interest.  He  had 
heard  vague  reports  that  Madeleine  Presson  had  blos 
somed  into  beautiful  womanhood  since  he  had  seen  her. 
He  had  been  prepared  to  meet  a  rather  vain  and  pam 
pered  young  lady,  conscious  of  her  charms  and  attain 
ments.  He  assumed  a  bit  of  reserve  as  armor  for  his 
sensitiveness.  But  this  attitude  responded  so  ill  to 
her  good-humored  ease  in  renewing  their  acquaintance 
ship  that  he  was  momentarily  embarrassed,  remember 
ing  what  he  had  said  to  his  grandfather  a  few  hours 
before. 

"  I  think  I  have  a  most  distinct  recollection  of  Mr. 
Harlan  Thornton.  When  I  was  ten  years  old  you 
brought  me  some  lumps  of  spruce-gum  in  a  birch-bark 
box  and  I  declined  it,  saying  that  young  ladies  did  not 
chew  gum.  But  I  took  it  when  you  looked  so  sad,  and 
I  carried  it  away  to  boarding-school,  and  I  found  out  that 
young  ladies  do  chew  gum — when  no  one  is  watching 
them.  That  gift  made  me  very  popular,  sir,  and  now  I 
thank  you.  I  fear  I  did  not  thank  you  then." 

"  It's  worth  waiting  all  this  time  to  hear  you  say  that. 
I'm  glad  the  gift  found  appreciation,  for  I  culled  the 
winter  pickings  of  a  whole  logging  crew  for  those  red 
nuggets.  I've  been  so  distrustful  of  my  good  taste  ever 
since  that  I've  never  dared  to  give  anything  to  a  young 
lady." 

"  I'm  afraid  you  didn't  realize  what  you  were  doing 
when  you  snubbed  him,"  put  in  the  Duke.  "I  haven't 
been  able  to  get  him  out  of  the  woods  since — till  now, 
and  I've  had  to  bring  him  almost  by  main  force." 

The  carriage  was  at  the  door.  The  State  chairman 
led  the  way  to  it.  He  had  a  home  for  his  family  apart 
from  the  big  hotel,  the  mammoth  hostelry  of  the  State — 
one  of  his  many  business  ventures. 

"  We  are  on  our  way  home  from  our  morning  ride — 
139 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

it's  the  real  jolly  part  of  the  June  day,  the  two  hours 
before  breakfast,"  explained  the  girl,  as  they  went  down 
the  steps.  "When  we  called  here  for  father  you  may 
imagine  how  delighted  we  were  to  find  your  grandfather. 
I  know  you  understand,  Mr.  Harlan  Thornton,  what  a 
dear  old  man  your  grandfather  is!" 

"  He  has  been  mother,  father,  brother,  and  sister  and 
best  friend — all  those  to  me.  He  has  seemed  to  have 
some  of  the  elements  of  all. 

"  I  know  of  the  good  things  he  has  done,  and  how  un 
grateful  some  of  the  folks  are  he  has  helped.  Your 
grandfather  would  be  a  real  saint  if  it  were  not  for  poli 
tics.  You  know  we  folks  at  the  State  capital  hear 
politics  talked  all  the  time.  I  suppose  my  good  father 
has  the  same  wicked  things  said  about  him — though,  of 
course,  I  don't  hear  them." 

"And  I've  been  too  deep  in  the  woods  to  hear." 

Presson  ushered  his  wife  and  the  young  people  into 
the  carriage. 

"Thelismer  and  I  would  rather  walk,"  he  said.  "We 
have  some  more  matters  to  talk  over."  And  he  sent 
them  away. 

Harlan  took  his  seat  opposite  the  ladies,  and  now, 
in  this  close  proximity,  he  realized  how  charming  the 
young  girl  was.  From  the  close  braids  of  her  brown 
hair  to  the  tips  of  her  bronze  shoes  she  was  womanly 
grace  and  refinement  personified.  There  was  a  cordial 
frankness  in  her  tone  and  eyes  that  attracted  him,  and 
put  him  at  his  ease.  Yet  there  was  no  hint  of  coquetry. 
He  liked  her  at  once  and  instinctively,  because  somehow 
she  seemed  to  meet  him  on  a  manly  plane  of  good-fellow 
ship — and  yet  she  was  so  thoroughly  and  deliciously 
feminine.  There  was  just  a  bit  of  a  drawl  in  her  voice, 
a  suggestion  of  jocoseness,  continual  appreciation  of  the 
humor  of  life  and  living.  And  her  laugh  was  an  in 
spiration. 

140 


THE  DUKE'S  DOUBLE  CAMPAIGN 

He  was  a  little  surprised  at  himself  when  he  found  that 
he  was  chatting  with  her  so  easily.  Later,  when  he  re 
flected,  he  understood.  She  had  almost  a  masculine 
breadth  of  view  in  addition  to  her  culture.  In  that  first 
day  of  their  meeting  she  gave  voice  to  some  of  his  own 
unexpressed  views  regarding  the  trend  of  the  times  in 
public  matters.  She  apologized,  half-humorously.  "  But 
as  I  said  to  you  a  while  ago,  we  hear  politics  talked  much 
at  the  State  capital." 

Following  the  after-breakfast  chat,  he  walked  back  to 
the  hotel  with  his  grandfather. 

"  By-the-way,  I  didn't  lie  to  you  any  about  Luke's 
girl,  did  I?"  remarked  the  old  man,  casually,  and  as 
though  the  matter  had  occurred  to  him  in  default  of 
better  topic.  "But  she's  too  advanced  in  her  ideas  for 
a  woman.  She'll  be  suffragette-ing  it  next." 

When  Harlan  began  to  defend  the  right  of  women  to 
interest  themselves  in  the  larger  affairs,  only  a  twinkle 
in  the  Duke's  eye  betrayed  his  amusement.  If  Harlan, 
in  his  first  quick  suspicions,  had  secretly  accused  his 
grandfather  of  planning  a  matrimonial  campaign  in 
conjunction  with  his  political  one,  he  was  now  ashamed 
of  those  suspicions,  for  they  concerned  Madeleine  Pres- 
son.  Having  met  her,  he  realized  that  if  he  should  dare 
to  connect  her  in  his  thoughts  with  anything  that  his 
grandfather  might  be  scheming  he  was  making  of  him 
self  a  very  presumptuous  and  silly  ass.  Now  that  he 
had  seen  her,  now  when  he  was  spending  days  of  wait 
ing  at  the  State  capital  and  seeing  her  frequently,  he 
found  that  Madeleine  Presson's  personality  eliminated 
possible  matchmakers.  He  felt  very  humble  in  her 
presence — and  still  ashamed.  He  had  never  taken 
stock  of  his  own  deficiencies  very  particularly.  His 
environment  had  not  prompted  it.  He  had  been 
superior  to  the  men  he  had  ruled.  He  realized  now  that 
the  little  amenities  of  life  which  make  for  poise  and  ease 

141 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

must  be  lived,  not  simply  learned.  In  taking  thought 
lest  he  err  he  found  himself  proceeding  awkwardly.  His 
training  in  the  past  had  led  him  to  set  work  and  achieve 
ment  ahead  of  all  the  rest.  He  understood  now  that  those 
essentials  in  a  life  that  is  to  yield  the  most  appear 
better  as  superstructure.  Mere  achievement  may  at 
tract  respect.  Erected  on  culture,  it  wins  still  more. 
Respect  feeds  only  one  appetite  of  ambition.  True 
ambition  is  hungry  for  affection  and  friends,  placing 
lovers  ahead  of  sycophants.  And  the  finer  qualities, 
the  softer  virtues,  attract  more  surely  than  mere  fame. 

These  and  similar  reflections  came  to  young  Thornton 
rather  incoherently.  It  was  not  that  he  desired  the 
affection  or  the  admiration  of  Madeleine  Presson.  But 
this  young  woman  represented  for  him  a  new  phase  of 
the  world  he  was  meeting  in  its  broader  sense — and  he 
was  ambitious  with  the  zest  of  youth.  Often  he  was 
obliged  to  spur  himself  out  of  diffidence  in  her  serene 
presence.  At  other  times  she  put  him  at  his  ease  with  a 
tact  which  made  him  realize  his  own  shortcomings.  And 
under  those  circumstances  ambition  droops  like  a  plant 
in  a  drought. 

He  had  time  to  think  during  the  two  weeks  he  was  at 
the  State  capital  waiting  for  the  big  convention.  His 
grandfather  made  no  demands  upon  him. 

Thelismer  Thornton  had  quietly  appointed  himself  the 
dominant  figure  in  the  back  room  at  State  headquarters. 
Under  his  big  hand  all  the  strings  met.  Even  Luke 
Presson  took  subordinate  post  as  a  lieutenant. 

The  Duke  of  Fort  Canibas  knew  that  he  was  in  control. 

The  Hon.  David  Everett  believed  that  he  was.  Thorn 
ton  blandly  cultivated  that  belief  in  Everett.  When 
Everett  talked  he  listened.  When  Everett  counselled 
he  agreed.  He  invited  all  the  confidence  of  that  gentle 
man;  he  made  sure  that  "the  logical  candidate"  used 
him  as  repository  of  all  his  political  secrets ;  he  was  care- 

142 


THE  DUKE'S  DOUBLE  CAMPAIGN 

ful  to  assure  himself  that  Everett's  strength  was  entirely 
in  his  hands  and  under  his  control — for  he  intended  to 
shatter  that  strength  so  instantly,  so  thoroughly,  that 
not  one  fragment  would  be  left  to  hamper  his  own  plans. 

And  yet  day  by  day,  word  by  word,  hint  by  hint — his 
eye  on  the  future  loyalty  of  the  Everett  faction  at  the 
polls — he  made  the  candidate  understand  that  Arba 
Spinney  was  a  man  to  be  reckoned  with — that  the  con 
vention  was  not  an  open-and-shut  certainty  for  the 
machine.  Without  realizing  how  it  had  come  about, 
Everett  found  himself  discussing  "political  exigencies." 
Without  knowing  that  he  had  been  selected  as  a  martyr 
for  his  party,  he  committed  himself  in  lofty  sentiments 
regarding  the  duty  of  a  man  in  a  crisis.  Not  that  he 
suspected  that  his  chances  were  endangered.  He  felt 
that  he  was  truly  the  man  of  destiny;  he  was  urging 
other  men  to  forget  their  slights  and  their  disappoint 
ments  and  rally  to  him.  But  the  fact  remained  that — 
thinking  wholly  of  other  men — he  had  committed  him 
self,  and  in  a  way  that  he  could  be  reminded  of  when  the 
time  came. 

The  Duke  planted  that  kedge  well  out,  to  serve  in  the 
stress  of  weather  at  the  polls  in  the  fall,  should  Everett 
and  his  men  be  silly  enough  to  confound  "  party  exi 
gency"  with  treachery. 

All  men  are  forgetful.  The  Duke  feared  that  some 
men  had  forgotten  the  details  of  Gen.  Varden  Way- 
mouth's  notable  life.  The  publicity  bureau,  obeying 
crafty  suggestions  and  not  understanding  just  what  it 
was  all  about,  began  in  the  stress  of  that  campaign  to 
recall  stories  of  the  old  days.  And  no  man  represented 
the  old  days  as  did  Varden  Waymouth,  hero,  scholar, 
and  statesman.  There  were  giants  in  the  old  days,  and 
every  machine  newspaper  in  the  State  hailed  General 
Waymouth  as  chief  of  the  giants.  They  contrasted 
the  present  with  the  past.  General  Waymouth's  picture 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

gazed  forth  in  stately  benignity  from  every  broadside — 
his  life  story  filled  the  columns  of  newspapers  and  the 
mouths  of  men. 

With  Arba  Spinney's  activities  Thornton  was  in  touch 
at  all  times.  More  than  ever  before  Mr.  Spinney  merited 
his  title  "Fog-horn."  He  was  striking  the  high  places 
in  the  State,  pouring  language  from  under  the  mat  of 
his  mustache,  warning  all  men  off  the  political  shoals 
of  "the  machine."  From  those  shoals  he  was  scooping 
up  mud  in  both  hands,  and  spattering  all  men  and  all 
measures.  He  found  plenty  of  listeners,  for  protest  was 
abroad.  But  the  persistent  defamer  irritates  even  his 
friends.  He  offends  the  innate  sense  of  patriotism  and 
loyalty  which  slinks  even  in  the  breast  of  the  rebel. 
The  Duke  noted  with  satisfaction  the  outward  symptoms 
of  Mr.  Spinney's  campaign;  he  was  winning  a  following 
in  those  days  of  unrest.  Through  the  columns  of  his 
newspapers  the  old  politician  exploited  Mr.  Spinney, 
seeing  to  it  that  he  was  well  advertised  as  a  man  who 
persistently  branded  his  own  State  as  a  den  of  infamy. 
Thus  he  made  Spinney  strong  enough  to  play  against 
Everett  and  weak  enough  to  fall  far  in  the  estimation 
of  men  when  the  time  came  for  him  to  fall. 

And  then  at  last,  in  the  latter  days  of  June,  all  roads 
led  to  Rome.  The  Republican  Convention  was  called 
for  the  twenty-eighth,  in  the  big  hall  of  the  State's 
metropolis. 

On  the  day  before,  Thelismer  Thornton  emerged  from 
the  back  room  of  headquarters  at  the  State  capital, 
and  with  Chairman  Presson  and  Harlan  journeyed  to 
the  scene  of  the  conflict.  Before  their  departure  the 
Duke  had  been  obliged,  smilingly,  to  refuse  a  request 
of  Mrs.  Presson's. 

She  had  asked  that  young  Mr.  Thornton  be  delegated 
as  squire  of  dames  to  accompany  herself  and  her  party 
to  the  convention. 

144 


THE     DUKE'S    DOUBLE    CAMPAIGN 

"  I'm  afraid  you  haven't  realized  for  a  week  or  so  that 
the  boy  is  in  politics,  Lucretia.  I've  let  him  run  to 
pasture  with  a  pretty  long  cord  on  him.  He'll  have  to 
come  in  under  the  saddle  now.  We'll  have  one  of  the 
young  beaus  from  the  Governor's  staff  on  the  lookout 
for  you  at  the  hall.  This  fellow  here" — he  patted 
Harlan's  arm — -"  he  hasn't  been  broken  to  the  society 
bridle  yet.  He  was  allowing  to  me  the  other  day  that 
he  didn't  propose  to  be,  either." 

Miss  Presson  had  overheard. 

Harlan,  remembering,  flashed  a  glance  of  rebuke  and 
anger  at  the  old  man.  It  was  a  shock  to  him  to  have 
his  own  sentiments  thrust  back  at  him  in  that  man 
ner. 

"We  haven't  found  Mr.  Harlan  ungallant,"  protested 
Mrs.  Presson.  She  treated  the  matter  in  jest,  though 
the  young  man's  face  did  not  indicate  that  he  especially 
appreciated  the  humor. 

"Oh,  he's  probably  just  been  playing  'possum — prac 
tising  dissimulation,  getting  used  to  being  a  politician! 
You  be  watching  out,  Lucretia.  He'll  forget  himself 
and  make  a  bolt  pretty  soon.  The  test  of  the  thing  will 
be  in  seeing  whether  he  holds  out  or  not!" 

In  his  indignation,  Harlan  was  too  confused  ^ust  then 
to  grasp  the  fact  that  his  tormentor  was  craftily  handing 
him  over  to  the  Presson  womenfolk,  bound,  branded, 
and  supple — unless  he  proposed  to  merit  his  grand 
father's  label  in  their  estimation. 

"  Now,  look  here,  grandfather  "-  —  he  began,  wrathfully; 
but  the  Duke  pulled  him  away,  drowning  his  protests 
in  a  laugh. 

"  You  have  placed  me  in  a  ridiculous  position,  and 
that's  a  mighty  mild  way  to  put  it,"  complained  the  in 
dignant  victim,  when  they  were  outside.  "  I  don't 
understand,  grandfather,  why  you  do  something  to  me 
every  now  and  then  that  knocks  all  the  props  out  from 

145 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

under  me.  It  isn't  decent — it's  vulgar — it's  shameful, 
the  way  you  do  some  things!" 

"  Operate  in  a  queer  way,  do  I  ?"  inquired  the  old  man, 
blandly. 

"  You  certainly  do." 

"  Did  you  ever  stop  to  think,  boy,  that  human  nature 
is  a  queer  thing?" 

"  Whose  human  nature  are  you  referring  to — yours  or 
mine?" 

"  You  know  what  the  old  Quaker  said  to  his  wife : 
'  All  the  world's  queer,  dear,  except  thee  and  me — and 
thee's  a  little  queer!'" 

The  angry  young  man  would  have  liked  to  get  a  little 
more  light  on  the  question,  but  Chairman  Presson  was 
ready  for  them  and  hustled  them  into  the  carriage. 
And  on  the  ride  to  the  station,  during  the  journey  by 
train,  at  the  convention  city,  there  were  other  matters 
uppermost  besides  a  young  man's  pique. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


THE    BEES    AND    THE    WOULD-BES 

EN — a  swarm  of  men — a  hiveful  of  men. 
Lobbies,  parlors,  corridors,  stairways  of 
the  big  hotel  packed  with  men. 

Men  in  knots,  in  groups,  in  throngs, 
pressing  together,  disintegrating  to  form 
new  groups,  revolving  in  the  slow  mass  of 
the  herd,  shaking  hands,  crying  greetings,  mumbling 
confidential  asides.  An  observer  who  did  not  under 
stand  would  find  it  all  as  aimless  as  the  activity  of  an 
ant-heap — as  puzzling  as  the  slow  writhings  of  a  swarm  of 
bees.  Clouds  of  cigar  smoke  over  all — voices  blended 
into  one  continual  diapason;  medley,  and  miasma  of 
close  human  contact. 

After  supper,  in  the  crowded  hotel  dining-room, 
Harlan  Thornton  accompanied  his  grandfather  through 
the  press  of  jostling  men. 

The  night  before  a  State  Convention  was  a  new  ex 
perience  for  him.  He  walked  behind  the  Duke,  who 
made  his  slow,  urbane  way  here  and  there,  drawling 
good-humored  replies  to  salutations.  He  had  quip 
ready  for  jest,  handclasp  for  his  intimates,  tactful  word 
for  the  newer  men  who  were  dragged  forward  to  meet 
him.  Even  the  Governor  of  the  State,  a  ponderous 
dignitary  with  a  banner  of  beard,  did  not  receive  so 
hearty  a  welcome,  for  the  Governor  was  accorded  only 
the  perfunctory  adulation  given  to  one  whose  reign  was 
passing. 

11  M7 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"Governors  come  and  Governors  go,  Thornton,  but 
you've  got  where  you're  an  institution!"  cried  one  ad 
mirer.  "  I'll  be  sorry  to  miss  you  out  of  the  legislature 
this  winter." 

"  But  here's  another  Thornton — and  you  can  see  that 
he  won't  rattle  'round  in  the  seat,"  returned  the  Duke, 
his  arm  affectionately  about  his  grandson's  shoulders. 

As  he  went  about,  in  this  unobtrusive  way,  varying 
his  manner  with  different  men,  he  presented  his  political 
heir. 

At  that  hour  there  was  no  surface  hint  of  the  factional 
spirit  that  divided  the  gathering  which  had  flocked 
from  the  ends  of  the  State.  Jealousy,  spite,  appre 
hension,  rivalry  were  hidden  under  the  gayety  of  men 
meeting  after  long  separation.  The  political  kinship  of 
party  men  dominated  all  else  in  those  early  hours.  It 
was  a  reunion.  Food  nestled  comfortably  under  the 
waistbands.  Tobacco — cigars  exchanged,  lights  bor 
rowed  from  glowing  tips — loaned  its  solace.  Bickerings 
were  in  abeyance.  Men  were  sizing  up.  Men  were  try 
ing  out  each  other.  Courtesy  invites  confidences.  The 
candidates  had  not  "taken  their  corners."  The  suites 
that  they  had  selected  for  headquarters  were  now  occupied 
only  by  the  lieutenants  who  were  arranging  the  boxes  of 
cigars  and  stacking  the  literature  ready  for  distribution. 

The  Hon.  David  Everett,  serene  in  the  consciousness 
of  approval  by  his  party  machine,  held  preliminary 
court  in  one  corner  of  the  spacious  office  lobby.  The 
State  chairman  was  with  him — his  executioner  skilfully 
disguised. 

Thelismer  Thornton  forged  through  the  crowd  in 
that  direction.  He  paid  his  respects  publicly  and 
heartily.  In  that  hour  when  congratulations  sugared 
the  surface  of  conditions,  after  he  had  pump-handled 
men  until  his  arm  ached,  Everett  forgot  that  he  ever  had 
entertained  doubts. 

148 


THE    BEES    AND    THE    WOULD-BES 

"There's  nothing  to  this!"  he  had  been  assuring  the 
State  chairman  over  and  over,  catching  opportunity  for 
asides.  "They're  all  coming  into  line.  The  sight  of 
you  and  Thornton  backing  me  has  reminded  them  all 
that  they  can't  afford  to  rip  the  party  open.  There's 
nothing  to  it!" 

Presson  agreed  amiably.  But  studying  his  men, 
searching  for  insincerity,  he  saw  what  Everett  closed 
his  eyes  to.  He  exchanged  a  significant  glance  with 
the  Duke  as  the  latter  turned  to  resume  his  promenade. 

Above  the  continual,  distracting  babble  one  sonorous 
voice  rose  insistently.  Laughter  and  applause  broke 
in  upon  it  occasionally.  There  was  a  din  in  that  corner 
of  the  lobby  that  attracted  many  of  the  curiosity-seekers 
in  that  direction. 

"There's  Fog-horn  Spinney  holding  forth,"  Thorn 
ton  informed  Harlan,  ironically.  "Come  along.  We 
mustn't  slight  any  of  the  candidates." 

They  made  way  for  him.  Men  grinned  up  into  his 
face  as  he  passed.  They  scented  possible  entertainment 
when  the  big  boss  met  the  demagogue.  Many  of  the 
men  wore  badges — long  strips  of  ribbon  with  this  legend 
printed  thereon,  running  lengthwise  of  the  ribbon: 

HONEST  ARBA 

Candidate  Spinney  had  a  thick  packet  of  ribbons  in 
one  of  his  gesticulating  hands.  He  was  flushed,  vocif 
erous,  and  somewhat  insolent.  Like  Everett,  he  was 
not  analyzing  the  acclamation  that  greeted  everything 
he  said ;  applause  had  made  him  drunk.  But  under  the 
hilarity  of  his  listeners  there  was  considerable  enthusiasm 
for  the  man  himself.  The  Duke  perceived  it,  for  he 
realized  what  times  had  come  upon  the  State.  Spinney's 
bombast  expressed  the  protest  that  was  abroad.  Re 
bellion,  thirsty,  does  not  seek  the  cold  spring  of  Reason. 

149 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

It  fuddles  itself  with  hot  speech,  it  riots — it  dares  not 
pause  to  ponder. 

"The  men  that  are  running  this  State  to-day  are 
running  it  for  themselves,"  he  declaimed,  as  Thornton 
and  his  grandson  came  into  the  front  rank  of  his  listeners. 
"They  want  it  all.  I  brand  'em  for  what  they  are.  I 
could  take  glue  and  a  hair-brush  and  make  hogs  out  of 
every  one  of  'em!" 

A  shout  of  laughter!  There  was  more  zest  for  the 
mob  in  the  point  of  Mr.  Spinney's  remarks,  with  the 
Duke  of  Fort  Canibas,  lord  of  the  north  country,  present 
to  listen. 

"I'm  not  ashamed  of  my  platform.  I'm  willing  to 
promulgate  it.  For  I'm  going  to  stand  behind  it.  It 
ain't  a  platform  fixed  up  in  a  back  room  of  this  hotel  the 
night  before  convention,  sprung  at  the  last  minute,  and 
worded  so  that  it  reads  the  same  backward  and  forward, 
and  doesn't  mean  any  more  than  whistling  a  tune! 
What  kind  of  a  system  is  it  that  taxes  the  poor  man's 
family  dog,  the  friend  of  his  children,  a  dollar,  and  lets 
the  rich  man's  wild  lands  off  with  two  mills  on  a  valua 
tion  screwed  down  to  pinhead  size?" 

Applause  that  indicated  that  the  bystanders  owned  dogs ! 

"  If  3^ou're  hunting  for  something  to  tax,  pick  out 
bachelors  instead  of  dogs.  Dogs  can't  earn  money. 
Bachelors  can.  There  are  forty  thousand  old  maids 
and  widows  in  this  State  who  can't  find  husbands.  Tax 
the  bachelors.  Give  the  single  women  a  pension.  Hunt 
out  the  tax-dodgers.  There  are  things  enough  to  tax 
instead  of  the  farms  and  cottages  of  the  poor  men." 

He  now  fixed  the  Duke  with  his  gaze. 

"  You  don't  dare  to  deny,  do  you,  that  the  system  in 
this  State  is  screwing  the  last  cent  out  of  the  exposed 
property  and  letting  the  dodgers  go  free?  Tax  the 
necessities  of  the  poor,  say  you!  I  say,  tax  the  luxuries 
of  the  rich!" 

150 


THE    BEES    AND    THE    WOULD-BES 

"  In  some  countries,  I  believe,  they  get  quite  a  revenue 
by  taxing  mustaches,"  stated  the  Duke,  thus  appealed 
to. 

Spinney  indignantly  broke  in  on  the  laughter. 

"  You've  carried  off  oppression  so  far  as  a  joke,  but 
you  can't  do  it  any  longer,  Squire  Thornton.  The  people 
are  awake  this  time.  They've  got  done  electing  law 
yers  and  dudes  and  land-grabbers  for  Governors.  They're 
going  to  have  a  Governor  that  will  make  State  officials 
work  for  fair  day's  wages,  as  the  farmers  and  artisans 
work.  No  more  high-salaried  loafers  in  public  office! 
No  more  dynasties,  Sir  Duke  of  Fort  Cam'bas!  You'll 
be  having  a  coat  of  arms  next!" 

This  last  was  said  in  rude  jest— the  public  horseplay 
of  a  man  anxious  to  win  his  laugh  at  any  cost. 

"  I've  got  a  coat  of  arms,  Arba;  I  won  the  decoration 
when  I  retired  from  hard  work  at  the  age  of  fifty.  That 
was  about  the  time  you  were  starting  in  life  by  selling 
fake  mining  stock  around  this  State.  My  coat  of  arms 
is  two  patches  on  a  homespun  background,  surrounded 
by  looped  galluses.  And  I  can  show  you  the  mile  of 
stone  walls  I  built  before  you  were  born." 

Spinney  did  not  relish  the  merriment  which  followed 
that  sally. 

"  You've  outgrown  that  coat  of  arms,  then,  in  these 
days,"  he  retorted.  "They  all  know  you  by  a  different 
stripe  since  you  set  the  other  chap  at  work,  Squire 
Thornton.  And  the  pendulum  of  power  is  swinging  the 
other  way!  The  people  are  behind  me.  You'd  better 
get  aboard."  His  style  of  humor  depended  most  on  its 
effrontery.  He  held  out  one  of  his  badges.  "  Better 
put  it  on,"  he  advised.  "Get  aboard  with  the  rush! 
They're  all  for  'Honest  Arba.'" 

The  Duke  stepped  forward  and  presented  his  breast. 

"  Pin  it  on,  Arba.  When  a  man  shifts  his  business 
and  is  introducing  a  brand-new  line  of  goods,  different 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

from  what  he  ever  carried  before,  he  needs  all  the  ad 
vertising  he  can  get.     Pin  it  on!" 

But  Mr.  Spinney  did  not  pin  it  on.  He  had  been  sure 
that  the  old  man  would  indignantly  refuse,  and  his 
discomfiture  was  evident. 

"You're  showing  your  regular  disposition,  I  see,"  he 
growled.  "  Grabbing  everything  you  can  get  hold  of. 
But  a  joke  is  a  joke — let  this  one  rest  right  here !  Thorn 
ton,  I  say  it  here  to  your  face,  where  all  the  boys  can 
hear  me:  the  people  want  a  change  in  this  State.  I  am 
not  going  behind  a  door  to  talk  with  you — that's  been 
done  too  much!  I  stand  in  the  open  and  say  it!  Open 
fighting  after  this — that's  my  code.  I  fight  for  the 
people.  The  people  shall  be  put  wise  and  kept  wise  to 
all  that's  going  on." 

"  It's  a  good  plan,"  counselled  the  Duke,  unperturbed. 
"I  see  I  can't  tell  you  anything  about  advertising." 
He  tapped  a  badge  on  the  breast  of  a  man  near  him. 

"I'm  for  the  people!"  shouted  Spinney.  "The  old 
wagon  needs  a  new  wheel-horse.  I  don't  insist  I'm  the 
right  one — or  the  only  one.  I  merely  say  I'm  willing 
to  take  hold  and  haul,  if  the  people  want  me  to.  I 
offer  myself,  if  no  better  one  is  found." 

The  crowd  applauded  that  sentiment  generously. 

Thornton  did  not  lose  his  amiability  —  his  tolerant 
yet  irritating  good-humor. 

"  Speaking  of  wheel-horses,  Arba — a  man  up  my  way 
started  out  to  buy  a  horse  the  other  day.  He  found  a 
black  one  that  suited — but  the  man  who  owned  that 
horse  was  mighty  honest,  as  most  of  my  constituents  are. 
'  You  don't  want  him,'  he  told  the  man.  '  He's  too 
blamed  slow.'  'That  doesn't  hurt  him  a  bit  for  me,' 
said  the  buyer.  '  I  want  him  to  mate  another  black 
horse  to  haul  my  hearse.  I'm  an  undertaker!'  'Then 
you  certainly  don't  want  him,'  insisted  the  fellow.  'The 
living  can  wait,  but  the  dead  have  got  to  be  buried.'" 

152 


THE    BEES    AND    THE    WOULD-BES 

The  Duke  had  made  his  way  out  of  the  crowd  before 
the  laughter  ceased. 

"Apply  it  to  suit,  Arba!"  he  called  over  his  shoulder. 

Arm  in  arm  with  his  grandson,  the  Duke  traversed 
the  lobby  and  went  up  the  broad  stairs  to  the  State 
Committee  headquarters — double  parlors  on  the  floor 
above.  The  men  who  were  sitting  in  the  main  parlor 
saluted  the  old  man  in  the  offhand  manner  of  intimates. 
He  drew  his  grandson  into  the  privacy  of  the  rear 
room. 

"  Now,  my  boy,  get  your  hat,  take  a  carriage  and 
meet  General  Waymouth  at  the  nine  o'clock  train. 
I've  had  him  on  the  telephone.  He's  coming  here  to 
night.  Between  us,  he's  grown  lukewarm  on  our  prop 
osition.  I  want  you  to  talk  with  him  after  you  meet 
him.  Take  your  time  on  the  way  from  the  station." 

"  I'm  a  pretty  poor  agent  to  send  on  such  a  job  as 
that,"  said  Harlan,  deprecatingly. 

"You're  just  the  one,"  insisted  the  old  man.  "Don't 
you  suppose  I  knew  what  I  was  doing  when  I  took  you 
with  me  that  night?  Talk  for  the  young  men  of  this 
State!  He's  tired  of  politics  and  politicians.  I  am, 
myself,  sometimes.  He's  got  to  dwelling  on  the  political 
side.  Get  it  out  of  his  mind.  Thank  God,  you  don't 
know  enough  politics  to  talk  it  to  him!  You  can  talk 
from  your  heart,  boy.  The  younger  generation  in  this 
State  does  want  a  change.  I  realize  it.  But  that 
change  has  got  to  be  tempered  with  political  wisdom. 
It  must  be  managed  through  politics.  I'll  attend  to  that 
part.  It's  your  task  to  make  Vard  Waymouth  see  that 
he  ought  to  stand.  You  can  do  it.  Begin  with  him 
where  you  left  off." 

Harlan  hesitated. 

"Well?"  inquired  the  Duke,  a  bit  petulantly. 

"  I've  been  used  to  talking  straight  out  to  you,  grand 
father.  I'm  willing  to  help  as  far  as  it's  in  my  poor 

153 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

power.  But  I  want  you  to  tell  me  that  I'm  not  being 
used  as  a  decoy-duck  in  this  thing." 

"I  reckon  you'd  better  explain  that,  son,"  said  the 
Duke,  stiffly. 

"  It's  your  own  fault  that  I'm  saying  a  word  about  it. 
But  you  did  some  talking  after  we  came  away  from 
General  Waymouth's  house.  It  wasn't  so  much  what 
you  said;  it  was  what  you  intimated.  I  believe  in 
General  Waymouth.  But  if  I'm  any  judge  of  what  has 
been  framed  up,  he  isn't  going  to  be  allowed  to  do  what 
he  wants  to  do." 

"Did  I  say  so?" 

"  No.  But  you  did  say  that  he  would  play  the  game 
with  the  chips  that  are  on  the  table,  not  with  sugar 
plums." 

"  And  you  construe  that  to  mean  that  I'm  pulling  him 
into  this  thing  so  as  to  be  able  to  work  him  in  the  in 
terests  of  the  machine,  eh?"  inquired  the  Duke,  putting 
into  brutal  speech  even  more  than  his  grandson's  vague 
suspicions  suggested.  "Now,  look  here!  You  remember 
Pod  McClintock  and  his  epileptic  fits  ?  You  know  he  fell 
into  a  barbed-wire  fence  in  a  fit,  and  told  around  after 
ward  how  he  had  been  to  heaven,  and  the  devil  met 
him  on  his  way  back  and  clawed  him  for  spite?  Well, 
now  don't  you  go  to  imitating  Pod.  There's  more  or  less 
barbed  wire  in  politics — any  man  gets  afoul  of  it.  But 
don't  lay  it  to  the  devil.  That  will  be  elevating  acci 
dents  onto  too  high  a  plane.  If  Vard  Waymouth  is  the 
next  Governor  of  this  State  there'll  be  some  wire  fences 
that  he  won't  be  able  to  sit  on.  There'll  be  too  many 
barbs.  We'll  put  top  rails  onto  all  the  fences  we  can. 
But  you  can't  make  any  fence  safe  for  those  that  are 
bound  to  butt  head-first  into  barbed  wire.  Waymouth 
isn't  the  kind  to  do  any  butting.  I'll  tell  you  this, 
Harlan,  and  it's  straight:  if  I  help  to  make  Waymouth 
our  next  Governor,  I'll  help  to  make  him  a  good  one — 

154 


THE    BEES    AND    THE    WOULD-BES 

provided  he  needs  any  of  my  help  in  that  line.  Now  go 
and  attend  to  your  business." 

There  were  few  at  the  railroad  station,  and  those  few 
paid  little  heed  to  General  Waymouth  when  he  stepped 
down  from  the  train.  The  young  man  greeted  him  with 
eager  respect,  and  explained  why  he  was  there. 

The  General  took  his  arm  and  walked  to  the  carriage. 
"This  is  restful.  I'm  glad  to  see  you  here,"  he  said. 
"But  to-morrow,"  he  added,  bitterly,  "if  I  am  fool 
enough  to  be  dragged  back  into  politics,  I'll  be  met 
wherever  I  go  by  men  that  fawn  and  men  that  seek — 
by  that  crowd  I  thought  and  hoped  I  had  escaped  for 
ever.  I  was  very  hasty,  Mr.  Thornton,  when  I  gave 
my  word  to  your  grandfather.  I  fear  I  must  hold  you 
responsible  just  because  you  were  present."  He  smiled 
as  the  young  man  took  his  seat  opposite.  "  But  you 
constituted  a  new  element  in  politics.  I  had  been  having 
my  dreams  in  the  peace  of  my  home — and  one  of  those 
dreams  was  to  see  the  young  men  of  this  State  breaking 
away  from  the  political  bondage  of  the  fathers.  But 
I'm  afraid  I  am  older  than  I  thought.  I  have  an  old 
man's  fears.  I  have  had  enough — too  much — of  the 
contact  of  men.  Now  this  next  idea  is  fanciful — an 
other  proof  that  I'm  old — in  my  dotage,  perhaps."  His 
tone  was  gently  playful.  "  I  told  you  the  other  day  that 
you  seemed  to  typify  the  young  strength  of  the  State. 
So  I'm  going  to  appeal  to  you,  young  man — I  cannot 
very  well  appeal  to  the  rest,  for  they  are  not  in  the  secret 
—I'm  going  to  beg  of  you,  Mr.  Second  Generation,  to 
release  me  from  my  promise.  What  say  you  ? — and 
remember  that  I'm  an  old  man  who  has  fought  the  good 
fight  and  is  very  weary." 

"  I've  got  to  confess  there  isn't  much  wit  and  humor 
in  me — there  doesn't  seem  to  be  just  now,"  stammered 
Harlan,  after  groping  some  moments  for  suitable  reply 
to  what  he  accepted  as  badinage. 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"Oh,  I  don't  want  jest  in  answer  to  that,  sir,"  pro 
tested  the  General.  "I  am  in  earnest."  But  his  tone 
was  still  a  bit  whimsical.  "  You  know,  even  so  great  a 
man  as  Cassar  consulted  the  oracle  and  the  omens  and 
the  soothsayers.  Why  should  not  I  practice  a  little 
divination?  Now  answer  me,  young  man — or  I'll  say, 
young  men  of  the  State?" 

"Yet  I  can't  think  you  really  mean  that,  General," 
protested  Harlan,  wholly  confused  by  this  persistent 
banter. 

"Call  it  in  fun,  call  it  in  earnest,  still  I  demand  my 
answer."  General  Waymouth  was  serious  now.  "  I 
came  here  resolved  to  tell  Thelismer,  face  to  face,  that 
I  could  not  sacrifice  the  last  strength  of  my  life  in  the 
way  he  has  asked.  But  when  you  met  me  at  the  station 
all  my  ambitions  for  this  newer  generation,  as  I  have 
dreamed  them,  came  up  in  me.  My  boy,  this  State  of 
ours  is  in  a  bad  way.  In  one  respect  it  is  especially  bad. 
We  have  one  solemn  law  in  our  constitution  that  is  made 
our  own  political  football  and  the  laughing-stock  of 
the  nation.  We  forbid  the  sale  of  liquor.  Look  at 
that  saloon  we  are  passing  at  this  moment!  It  is  a  law 
that  affects  nearly  every  person  in  our  State — comes 
near  to  every  one,  directly  or  indirectly.  The  manner 
of  its  breaking,  publicly  and  protected  by  politics,  has 
bred  disrespect  for  all  law  in  the  boys  who  are  growing 
up.  And  they  are  the  ones  who  will  run  our  State  when 
we  oldsters  are  gone.  I'll  not  say  anything  about  the 
other  reforms  that  conditions  are  calling  for.  There's 
one — the  big  one  that  flaunts  itself  in  our  faces.  I'm 
of  the  old  school,  Mr.  Thornton.  I  don't  believe  in  the 
prohibitory  principle  as  applied  to  the  liquor  question. 
It  hasn't  the  right  spirit  behind  it — it  is  invoked  by 
bigots  and  fanatics  who  refuse  helpful  compromise.  But 
it's  a  law — our  law !  Every  day  that  passes  under  pres 
ent  conditions  adds  its  little  to  the  damnation  of  the 

156 


THE    BEES    AND    THE    WOULD-BES 

moral  principle  in  our  boys  and  girls,  growing  up  with 
eyes  and  ears  open.  God,  I  wish  I  were  twenty  years 
younger!  But  I'm  old  enough  to  have  fantastic  notions; 
old  enough  to  insist  on  an  answer  to  my  question,  in 
spite  of  what  you  may  think  of  my  mental  condition- 
Will  you  release  me  from  that  promise  ?  I  made  it  to 
the  young  men  of  this  State — in  my  disgust  at  conditions, 
in  my  passion  to  do  something  to  clean  out  this  nest!" 

The  lights  from  the  brilliant  shop-windows  shone  into 
the  carriage.  Harlan  leaned  forward.  The  General's 
face  was  serious. 

"  Still,  I  can't  understand  it!"  he  cried.     "  I'm  only — 

"  I  tell  you,  you  typify  for  me  at  this  moment  the 
young  men  of  my  State!  I  choose  to  decide  in  this 
fashion.  Do  you  feel  that  an  honest  Governor  would 
help  your  self-respect?" 

"  I  can  answer  that  question,  sir.  I  believe  in  you. 
Ever  since  you  promised  my  grandfather  that  you  would 
accept  the  nomination  I  have  depended  on  that  promise. 
I  know  what  you  can  do  for  our  State.  If  you  are  not  to 
be  our  next  Governor  the  heart  has  gone  out  of  me, 
and  the  young  men  of  this  State  have  lost  their  best 
hope." 

The  carriage  wheels  had  grated  to  a  standstill  against 
the  curb  in  front  of  the  big  hotel.  The  buzz  of  the 
crowded  hive  came  out  to  them  through  the  open 
windows.  General  Waymouth  glanced  that  way  and 
frowned.  But  when  lie  turned  and  looked  into  the  glow 
ing  face  of  the  young  marn  opposite,  his  countenance 
cleared  slowly.  His  smile  returned.  There  was  a  hint 
of  pathos  in  that  smile,  but  his  eyes  shone.  He  put  out 
his  hand  and  took  Harlan's  in  a  firm  clasp. 

"That  sounds  like  my  call  to  duty,  Mr.  Thornton," 
he  declared.  "I  listen.  I  obey!"  Then  he  dropped 
his  earnestness.  "  Let  this  little  talk  remain  a  secret 
between  us.  These  practical  politicians  wouldn't  under- 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

stand.  A  bit  of  an  old  man's  weakness;  perhaps  that 
was  it.  A  little  eccentric,  eh?" 

The  driver  had  opened  the  carriage  door. 

"I  believe  I  understand,  sir.  I  do  now.  And  I'm 
sorry." 

The  remark  was  a  bit  cryptic,  but  the  General  under 
stood. 

"  And  you'll  appreciate  better  what  this  means  to  me 
when  you  are  as  old  as  I.  But  that's  the  last  of  talk 
like  this,  my  boy.  There's  one  more  fight  still  in  me. 
We'll  just  go  ahead  and  find  out  how  much  honesty  is 
left  in  this  State — and  you  shall  help  me  hunt  for  it,  for 
old  eyes  need  the  help  of  young  ones,  and  I'm  going 
outside  the  politicians  to  find  honesty." 

He  led  the  way  across  the  pavement  to  a  side  door 
of  the  hotel. 

"We'll  go  in  this  way,  quietly,"  he  said.  "I  haven't 
any  appetite  for  that  kind  of  a  stew  just  yet." 


CHAPTER  XV 

SITTING    IN    FOR    THE    DEAL 

N  the  second  floor  of  the  hotel  Thelismer 
Thornton  was  pacing  the  corridor,  hands 
behind  his  back,  puffing  his  cigar.  He 
was  paying  no  heed  to  the  men  who  were 
streaming  past  him  in  both  directions, 
going  and  coming  from  the  rooms  of  the 
candidates.  Everett  and  Spinney  were  in  their  suites, 
extending  hospitality  with  questionable  cigars  and  ice- 
water. 

Delegates  were  flocking  up  from  the  hotel  bar  in 
squads.  They  were  meeting  other  delegates,  forming 
new  combinations  which  offered  fresh  opportunities  for 
"setting  'em  up,"  and  after  paying  their  respects  were 
hustling  back  down-stairs  again  to  interview  the  gentle 
men  in  white  jackets. 

Out  from  open  transoms  over  the  doors  of  sleeping- 
rooms  floated  cigar  smoke  and  voices.  There  were  boys 
running  with  ice-water  and  glasses  to  the  noisiest  rooms. 
From  some  of  these  rooms  the  familiar  bacchanalian 
songs  were  resounding  even  at  that  early  hour  of  the 
evening.  The  chorus  of  "We're  here  because  we're 
here  "  mingled  with  the  words  of  that  reminiscent  old 
carol,  "When  we  fit  with  Gineral  Grant,  by  gosh." 

The  Duke,  towering,  abstracted,  swaying  along  pon 
derously,  close  to  the  wall  of  the  corridor,  eyes  on  the 
head  of  the  stairway,  was  as  indifferent  to  the  uproar  as 
he  was  to  those  who  passed. 

159 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

A  man  who  was  somewhat  flushed  and  a  bit  uncertain 
in  his  gait  came  out  of  the  State  Committee  headquarters. 
He  planted  himself  in  front  of  Thornton. 

"Thelismer,"  he  said,  familiarly,  "I've  been  trying 
to  get  something  out  of  Luke.  He  won't  say.  Now 
what  do  you  know  about  it?  Is  the  party  going  to  be 
honest?  Are  we  going  to  get  that  resubmission  plank 
in  the  platform  this  year?" 

"They  haven't  asked  me  to  write  the  platform, 
Phon." 

"I  tell  you,  the  people  want  a  chance  to  vote  on  this 
prohibitory  question.  It's  been  stuck  into  our  con 
stitution  where  the  people  can't  get  at  it.  I  ain't 
arguing  high  license,  but  I  tell  you  the  people  want  a 
chance  to  vote  on  the  question,  and  the  Democrats  are 
going  to  offer  'em  a  chance." 

"That's  a  Democratic  privilege,"  said  the  Duke, 
calmly,  preparing  to  push  past  his  interlocutor.  "The 
Republican  party  stands  for  prohibition,  and  hasn't  had 
any  trouble  in  rounding  up  the  votes  for  the  last  twenty- 
five  years." 

But  the  disputant  caught  hold  of  him  when  he  started 
away. 

"Look  here,  Thelismer,  you  ain't  so  much  of  a 
hypocrite  as  the  most  of  "em.  Why  don't  you  help  us 
make  a  break  in  this  thing?  Damn  it,  let's  be  decent 
about  it !  Rum  enough  running  in  that  bar-room  down 
stairs  to  drive  the  turbine-wheel  in  my  woollen-mill !  Half 
the  delegates  to  this  convention  with  a  drink  aboard, 
and  a  third  of  'em  pretty  well  slewed!  I  am  myself. 
But  I'm  honest  about  it.  They're  drinking  rum  in 
about  every  room  in  this  hotel.  And  they're  going 
into  convention  to-morrow  and  nail  that  prohibitory 
plank  into  the  platform  with  spikes.  By  Judas,  I'm 
honest  in  my  business;  now  I  want  to  have  a  chance 
to  be  honest  in  my  politics!" 

1 60 


SITTING    IN    FOR    THE    DEAL 

The  Duke  gazed  down  on  him  good-humoredly.  He 
was  accustomed  to  overlook  the  little  delinquencies  of 
his  fellows  on  such  festal  occasions  as  State  Conventions. 

"  You're  asking  too  much  out  of  party  politics,  Phon," 
he  declared.  "There  are  drawbacks  to  all  the  best 
things;  seeing  that  the  National  platform  won't  let  you 
vote  as  you  think,  you  can  hardly  ask  the  State  platform 
to  be  perfect  and  let  you  vote  as  you  drink." 

But  his  friend  was  not  in  the  mood  for  jovial  rallying. 

"  By  the  gods,  if  you  old  bucks  that  have  been  running 
things  ain't  going  to  give  us  a  show — if  we  ain't  going 
to  get  our  rights  from  our  own  party — I  know  what  I  can 
do!  I  can  vote  the  Democratic  ticket,  and  I  know 
of  a  lot  more  that  will.  You're  asleep,  you  managers!" 

"Well,  Phon,  when  you  vote  as  you  drink — voting 
the  Democratic  ticket — you'll  vote  for  a  popocratic  tax 
on  corporations  that  will  make  your  woollen-mill  look 
sick.  And  that's  only  one  thing!" 

"I  know  what  I  will  do,"  insisted  the  rebel. 

The  Duke  took  him  by  his  two  shoulders. 

"So  do  I,"  he  returned.  "You'll  have  a  bath,  a  shave, 
four  hot  towels,  and  a  big  bromo-seltzer — all  in  the  morn 
ing,  and  you'll  go  into  the  State  Convention  and  stick 
by  the  party,  just  as  you  always  have  done.  But  as  for 
to-night — why,  Phon,  I  wouldn't  be  surprised  to  see  you 
pledge  yourself  to  Arba  Spinney." 

He  gayly  shoved  the  man  to  one  side  and  went  on. 

"Well,  even  Foghorn  is  getting  more  votes  corralled 
than  you  old  blind  mules  realize!"  shouted  the  other 
after  him.  "This  party  is  sick!  You're  going  to  find 
it  out,  too!" 

"Sick  it  is,  but  I  reckon  here's  the  doctor,"  muttered 
the  old  man,  hurrying  toward  the  top  of  the  stairs. 

General  Waymouth  had  appeared  there,  Harlan  close 
behind  him. 

The  Duke  forestalled  those  who  hastened  to  greet  the 

161 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

veteran.  Taking  his  arm,  he  marched  him  promptly 
across  the  corridor  and  into  the  rear  room  of  State  Com 
mittee  headquarters.  He  locked  the  door  behind  them 
after  Harlan  had  entered. 

"I  don't  think  we're  exactly  ready  for  that  public 
reception  yet,"  he  observed  with  a  chuckle,  turning  from 
the  door.  He  glanced  at  the  General,  anxious  and  keen 
in  his  scrutiny. 

"Yard!"  he  cried,  heartily,  noting  the  resolution  in  the 
countenance,  the  light  in  the  old  soldier's  eyes,  "you're 
looking  better,  here,  than  you  sounded  over  the  tele 
phone  a  few  hours  ago.  You're  going  to  stand — of 
course  you're  going  to  stand!" 

"I'll  take  the  nomination,  Thelismer — that  is,  pro 
viding  you  want  me  to  stand  as  a  candidate  who  will 
go  into  office  without  a  single  string  hitched  to  him." 

"I  guess  the  party  isn't  running  into  any  desperate 
chances,  Yard,  with  you  in  the  big  chair.  Sit  down 
now  and  take  it  easy.  I'll  call  Luke  in.  After  we've 
had  our  talk  with  him,  we'll  begin  to  enlarge  our  circle 
a  little — it's  a  pretty  close  combination  up  to  now." 

The  porter  at  the  door  summoned  the  chairman  of  the 
State  Committee. 

"The  Senator  is  just  in  from  Washington,"  he  an 
nounced,  after  his  enthusiastic  greeting  of  the  General. 
"I  took  him  right  up  to  Room  40,  where  the  Committee 
on  Resolutions  is  at  work.  He  wanted  to  attend  to  that 
first.  Then  he'll  be  down  here." 

The  chairman  was  referring  to  the  United  States 
Senator  who  would,  by  party  custom,  preside  at  the  con 
vention  next  day  for  the  purpose  of  tinkering  his  own 
fences. 

"Is  Senator  Pownal  dictating  the  platform?"  inquired 
the  General,  rather  icily. 

"He's  got  a  few  little  ideas  of  his  own  he  wants  to 
work  in,"  affably  explained  the  chairman.  "Nothing 

162 


SITTING    IN    FOR    THE    DEAL 

drastic.  A  little  endorsement  of  some  things  he's 
gunning  for.  It  '11  be  all  safe  and  sane.  We  backed 
those  resubmission  fellows  out  of  the  room." 

"By-the-way,  keep  a  sharp  eye  out  for  those  chaps, 
Luke,"  counselled  the  Duke.  "I've  been  hearing 
around  the  hotel  this  evening  that  they're  going  to  in 
troduce  a  resubmission  plank  from  the  floor  to-morrow." 

"I'll  rush  an  early  vote  in  the  convention,  providing 
that  all  resolutions  shall  be  presented  to  the  Committee 
on  Resolutions  without  argument,"  stated  the  chairman. 
"All  that  foolishness  can  be  killed  right  in  the  committee- 
room.  We've  got  trouble  enough  on  hand  in  the  party 
this  year  without  letting  the  convention  express  itself 
on  the  liquor  question,  even  if  the  split  only  amounts  to 
a  sliver." 

He  pulled  his  chair  to  the  table,  spread  some  papers 
there,  and  commanded  attention  by  tapping  his  eye 
glasses  on  the  sheets. 

"Here's  the  programme  for  the  routine:  Called  to 
order  at  ten-thirty  by  chairman  of  State  Committee. 
Call  read  by  secretary.  On  motion  of  Davis  Bolton,  of 
Hollis,  proceed  to  effect  temporary  organization — 
Senator  Walker  Pownal,  chairman — and  so  forth.  On 
motion  of  Parker  Blake,  of  Jay,  ten  minutes'  recess  de 
clared  for  county  delegations  to  choose  vice-president, 
member  of  State  Committee,  and  member  of  the  Com 
mittee  on  Resolutions." 

As  he  read  on,  Harlan  opened  his  eyes  as  well  as  his 
ears.  The  convention  of  the  morrow  had  been  blocked 
out  to  the  last  detail.  Every  motion  that  was  to  be 
made,  every  step  that  was  to  be  taken,  had  its  man 
assigned  to  it — and  that  man  had  already  been  notified 
and  tagged.  Fifteen  hundred  men,  assembled  pre 
sumably  as  free  and  independent  agents  to  take  counsel 
for  the  good  of  the  party,  were  here  bound  to  the  narrow 
est  routine,  with  programme  cut  and  dried  to  such  an 
12  163 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

extent  that  one  who  dared  to  lift  his  voice  to  interrupt 
would  be  considered  an  interloper.  And  he  knew  that 
even  then,  from  what  Presson  had  said,  the  little  band 
of  the  select  were  formulating  the  resolutions  that  the 
committee  would  take  in  hand  as  delivered — accepting 
that  platform  as  the  dictum  of  the  party,  and  free  speech 
on  the  convention  floor  denied. 

"Now,"  said  the  chairman,  at  the  close,  "let's  fill  in 
the  rest,  and  finish  this  thing  now.  Spinney's  name  will 
be  presented  by  Watson,  of  his  county,  and  seconded 
by  three  other  counties.  I'm  limiting  the  seconding 
speeches  to  three.  And  you  know  the  men  Everett  has 
picked  out!  Of  course,  I've  left  the — the  big  matter  in 
your  own  hands,  Thelismer."  Presson  glanced  over  his 
glasses  at  General  Waymouth  with  a  significant  smile. 
"Have  you  decided?  Are  you  going  to  let  both  the 
other  candidates  be  put  in  nomination  before  you  spring 
the  trap?" 

"Sure!"  snapped  Thornton.  "I  want  that  conven 
tion  to  realize  how  little  good  can  be  said  of  either  of 
them.  By  the  time  that  gets  through  those  fifteen 
hundred  skulls,  they'll  be  in  a  state  of  mind  to  appreciate 
the  man  of  the  hour!" 

General  Waymouth  was  leaning  back  in  his  deep 
chair,  his  head  on  the  rest,  his  eyes  upturned  to  the 
ceiling,  fingers  tapping  the  chair's  arm.  He  was  offering 
no  comment. 

"Yard,"  said  the  Duke,  "we've  got  to  let  a  few  more 
into  the  case  now.  Overnight  is  short  notice,  at  that, 
for  a  man  to  get  his  nominating  speech  ready.  But 
we're  safe.  It  won't  be  the  speech  that  will  take  that 
convention  off  its  feet.  It  '11  be  your  name — and  the 
fact  that  you're  willing  to  stand.  Who've  you  got  in 
mind?" 

"No  one,"  replied  the  General,  briefly. 

"Any  choice?" 

164 


SITTING    IN    FOR    THE    DEAL 

"No." 

"You're  willing  to  leave  it  to  me?" 

"I  am." 

"Then  I'll  admit  I've  picked  the  men  in  my  mind. 
One  is  Linton,  that  young  lawyer  that's  been  taking 
the  lead  in  the  referendum  and  the  direct  primaries 
campaigns — both  of  them  devilish  poor  political  policies; 
but  that  doesn't  prevent  him  from  being  the  most 
eloquent  young  chap  in  the  State.  And  he'll  tole  along 
the  liberals.  We'll  need  only  one  other — that's  old 
Colonel  Wads  worth.  You  see  the  scheme  of  that  com 
bination,  of  course!  We  don't  need  any  more.  The 
convention  will  be  off  its  feet  before  the  old  Colonel  gets 
half  through  his  seconding  speech.  Linton  is  a  delegate, 
Luke,  and  I  saw  to  it  that  the  old  Colonel  was  fixed  out 
with  a  proxy  after  I  got  here.  Now,  Harlan,  you  go  out 
and  hunt  up  those  two  gentlemen,  and  bring  them  here 
quietly.  They're  in  the  hotel.  Come  to  the  private 
door,  there.  You  say  you  haven't  suggestions,  Yard?" 

"  Not  now,"  said  the  General,  not  shifting  his  position. 
"The  time  for  my  suggestions  has  not  come  yet." 

Harlan  went  out  into  the  throng,  searching,  asking 
questions.  The  first  man  of  whom  he  made  inquiry 
recognized  him  as  Thelismer  Thornton's  grandson,  and 
invited  him  to  the  bar  to  have  a  drink. 

"Busy?"  he  ejaculated  when  the  young  man  declined. 
"H — 1,  there  ain't  any  one  really  busy  here  to-night, 
except  Senator  Pownal  and  Luke  Prcsson.  They're 
running  the  convention.  The  delegates  don't  have  to 
do  anything — they  are  just  here  for  a  good  time.  Come 
on!" 

As  Harlan  walked  away  from  him,  he  remembered 
what  Chairman  Presson  had  just  delivered  from  his 
papers,  and  decided  that  truth  often  spoke  from  the 
depths  of  the  wine-cup. 

He  did  not  find  either  of  his  men  in  the  Hon.  David 
165 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Everett's  headquarters.  The  rooms  were  packed.  Per 
spiring  delegates  were  edging  in  and  oozing  out.  Everett 
was  industriously  shaking  hands,  his  rubicund  face 
sweat-streaked,  his  voice  hoarse  after  his  hours  of  con 
stant  chatter  in  that  smoke-drenched  atmosphere. 
Harlan  stood  a  moment,  and  looked  at  him  with  a  sort 
of  shamed  pity.  The  plot  seemed  unworthy,  in  spite  of 
its  object.  The  sordid  treachery  of  politics  was  turned 
up  to  him,  all  its  seamy  side  displayed. 

Two  men  crowded  past  him,  talking  low;  but  in  that 
press  their  mouths  were  near  his  ear.  They  were  halted 
by  the  jam  at  the  door. 

"What  did  you  stab  him  for — how  much?"  asked  one. 

"Got  ten,"  said  his  companion — "ten  on  account.  I 
get  fifty  for  the  caucus." 

"Too  many  machine  Republicans  in  my  town,  and 
he  knows  it,"  said  the  other.  "The  best  I  could  do  was 
fool  him  out  of  twenty-five.  But  that's  doing  well — in 
these  times.  This  Spinney  stir  has  made  it  cost  Everett 
more  than  it  has  cost  any  candidate  for  ten  years.  I 
really  didn't  have  the  heart  to  crowd  him  for  any  more. 
He's  been  jounced  down  good  and  hard  as  it  is." 

Harlan  took  one  more  look  at  the  unconscious  and 
fatuous  Everett,  and  went  out  of  the  room.  Twenty 
feet  away,  as  he  knew,  sat  his  grandfather,  ready  and 
able  to  smash  the  candidate's  dreams  and  chances  as  a 
child  bursts  a  soap-bubble.  And  the  man's  money — 
thrown  to  the  winds  when  a  word  might  have  held  his 
hand  and  closed  his  pocket-book!  Harlan,  grandson  of 
Thelismer  Thornton,  tried  to  put  the  thing  out  of  his 
mind. 

"Politics,"  said  a  man  in  the  corridor  in  his  hearing, 
"has  got  the  pelt  off'm  second-story  work,  as  they're 
running  the  political  game  in  this  State  right  now.  But 
it's  only  petty  larceny.  And  that's  why  the  whole  thing 
makes  me  sick." 

166 


SITTING    IN, FOR    THE    DEAL 

"Me  too,"  said  his  listener.  "You  could  brag  some 
about  a  political  safe-blowing,  but  we  all  have  to  turn 
to  and  hush  up  this  sneak-thief  work." 

Harlan,  walking  on,  wondered  whether  the  coup  that 
was  then  in  process  of  elaboration  in  State  Committee 
headquarters  would  not  be  considered  by  Everett  and 
his  supporters  as  arising  to  the  proper  dignity  of  political 
crime. 

To  his  surprise  Spinney's  rooms  were  practically 
deserted.  The  candidate  was  there,  perched  on  the  edge 
of  a  table,  nursing  his  knee  in  his  clasped  hands  and 
talking  vigorously  to  a  few  of  his  intimates.  The  de 
fection  was  not  bothering  him,  apparently.  Harlan 
promptly  understood  why.  As  he  stood  for  a  moment, 
making  sure  that  neither  Linton  nor  Wadsworth  was 
there,  he  heard  the  mellow  blare  of  distant  band  music. 
Spinney  jumped  off  the  table. 

"The  boys  are  coming!"  cried  one  of  his  friends,  and 
stepped  out  through  the  window  upon  a  balcony.  "  Wait 
till  after  I  call  for  the  cheers,  Arba!"  he  called  back. 
"Step  out  when  they  strike  up  Hail  to  the  Chief" 

"This  will  make  the  Everett  bunch  sit  up  and  take 
notice,"  said  a  man  at  Harlan's  elbow.  "There'll  be  a 
thousand  men  in  line  behind  that  band  when  she  swings 
into  the  square,  here!  And  a  Spinney  badge  on  every 
one  of  'em!" 

He  was  challenged  promptly.  The  corridor  was  full 
of  Everett  men. 

"Ten  dollars  to  a  drink  that  your  man  Spinney  pays 
for  the  band!  And  when  a  band  starts  up  street  you 
can  get  every  yag,  vag,  and  jag  in  the  city  to  trail  it! 
You  can't  fool  doubtful  delegates  that  way,  Seth!  Go 
hang  your  badges  on  a  hickory  limb.  They're  only  good 
to  scare  crows.  You  can't  scare  us!" 

This  speaker  heard  Harlan  making  inquiries  for  his 
men. 

167 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"The  Colonel  is  down  in  the  office,"  was  his  informa 
tion,  "over  in  the  farther  corner,  behind  one  of  those 
palms,  telling  war  stories  to  Herbert  Linton.  Just  came 
past  'em." 

It  seemed  a  rather  happy  augury  to  Harlan;  that 
out  of  that  throng  his  two  men  should  have  paired  them 
selves  struck  him  as  an  interesting  coincidence.  He 
found  them,  and  quietly  delivered  his  message. 

Colonel  Wadsworth  stood  up,  gaunt,  straight,  twisting 
his  sparse  imperial,  and  blinking  a  bit  doubtfully  at  the 
messenger.  But  Linton  was  not  so  much  at  a  loss  for 
reasons.  He  was  an  earnest  young  man  with  slow, 
illuminating  smile. 

"Has  the  committee  seen  new  light  regarding  my  two 
planks,  Mr.  Thornton?"  he  asked;  and  without  waiting 
for  answer,  he  led  the  way.  The  three  were  admitted 
at  the  private  door. 

United  States  Senator  Pownal  was  there,  evidently 
newly  arrived  from  the  committee-room. 

The  band  was  just  coming  into  the  square  under  their 
windows. 

Its  deafening  clamor  beat  in  echoes  between  the  high 
buildings,  the  mob  was  roaring  huzzas.  The  bedlam 
blocked  conversation. 

Thelismer  Thornton  pulled  down  the  windows  and 
twitched  the  curtains  together. 

"Let  'em  hoorah,"  he  said.  "With  Spinney's  band 
on  tap,  any  fellows  that  try  to  listen  at  our  keyholes  will 
be  bothered.  I'm  glad  his  band  is  out  there.  Now, 
gentlemen,  I  have  something  to  say  to  you." 

They  listened  to  him,  all  standing.  Only  General 
Waymouth  kept  his  seat,  his  head  tipped  back,  his 
finger-tips  together. 

The  Duke  was  brief,  but  he  was  cogent  and  he  was 
emphatic.  He  explained  what  he  had  done  and  why 
he  had  done  it.  He  was  frank  and  free  with  that  selected 

1 68 


SITTING    IN    FOR    THE    DEAL 

few.  He  delicately  made  known  the  General's  reluc 
tance,  but  stated  in  his  behalf  his  willingness  to  step  into 
the  breach  at  this  eleventh  hour  for  the  sake  of  his  party. 
Then  Thornton  went  first  to  Colonel  Wadsworth,  drew 
him  along  to  Linton,  and  told  them  what  their  party 
asked  of  them. 

Senator  Pownal  did  not  wait  for  this  explanation  to 
be  finished.  He  was  the  first  to  reach  General  Way- 
mouth  with  congratulations  and  endorsement. 

"You  cannot  understand  how  immensely  relieved  I 
am  to  know  this  plan,"  he  declared.  "I  have  been  here 
only  a  few  hours,  but  I  was  just  beginning  to  realize 
what  the  situation  had  developed  into.  I  hadn't  the 
proper  perspective  at  Washington.  Thornton  is  right. 
We're  on  the  edge  of  an  upheaval  in  this  State;  I'm 
afraid  Everett  would  have  plunged  us  straight  into  it." 

Thornton  had  made  no  mistake  in  his  selection  of 
advocates.  Colonel  Wadsworth  rushed  to  the  chair  of 
his  old  commander,  and  Linton,  with  a  young  man's 
loyal  zeal,  followed.  The  lawyer  came  back  to  Harlan, 
his  eyes  shining. 

"We've  got  a  man  to  follow  now,  Mr.  Thornton,  not  a 
political  effigy  nor  a  howl  on  two  legs !  I  was  down  there 
hiding  myself.  I  hadn't  stomach  for  either  of  the  others." 

There  had  been  a  brief  silence  outside.  Then  the  band 
struck  up  Hail  to  the  Chief,  and  the  uproar  broke  out 
once  more. 

"That's  our  tune,  and  they  don't  know  it  yet!"  cried 
the  Senator,  gay ly.  "Let's  have  the  benefit  of  that  to 
spice  our  little  celebration,  now  and  here!"  He  started 
for  the  window  to  open  it,  but  General  Waymouth  put 
out  his  hand  and  checked  him.  He  had  stood  up  to 
receive  their  handclasps. 

"One  moment,  Senator,"  he  entreated.  "I  have  a 
word  to  say  for  myself  now.  You  have  just  come  from 
Room  40.  Have  they  finished  drafting  the  platform?" 

169 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"It's  in  shape — practically  so." 

"Will  you  send  for  it?" 

The  Duke  nodded  to  Harlan,  and  the  young  man  arose. 
"Tell  Wasgatt  I  want  him  to  come  down  here  with  the 
resolutions,"  he  directed. 

And  while  he  was  gone  there  was  no  conversation  in 
the  parlor.  It  might  have  been  because  the  band  was 
playing  too  loudly;  it  might  have  been  because  General 
Waymouth's  visage,  grave,  stern,  almost  forbidding, 
rather  dampened  the  recent  cordiality  of  the  gathering. 


CHAPTER    XVI 

THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

HEN  Committeeman  Wasgatt  came  into 
the  room  in  tow  of  Harlan  Thornton 
he  found  silence  prevailing  there.  It 
was  silence  that  was  marked  by  a  little 
restraint.  The  band  outside  was  quiet 
now.  A  human  voice  was  bellowing. 
It  was  Arba  Spinney's  voice— a  voice  without  words. 

Wasgatt,  short,  stout,  habitually  pop-eyed  and  ner 
vous,  clutched  his  papers  in  one  hand  and  held  his 
eye-glasses  at  arm's-length  in  the  other. 

The  others  were  in  their  chairs  now,  ranged  about  the 
sides  of  the  room.  The  General,  alone,  was  standing 
near  the  table.  Wasgatt  turned  to  him  after  a  rapid 
scrutiny  of  the  make-up  of  the  party. 

"  I'd  like  to  have  the  resolutions  read,"  remarked  the 
General,  quietly. 

"Go  ahead,  Wasgatt,"  commanded  Presson;  and  the 
committeeman  advanced  to  the  table  under  the  chande 
lier  and  began  to  read. 

The  preamble  was  after  the  usual  stereotyped  form; 
the  first  sections  endorsed  the  cardinal  principles  of  the 
party,  and  Mr.  Wasgatt,  getting1  into  the  spirit  of  the 
thing,  began  to  deliver  the  rounded  periods  sonorously. 
General  Waymouth  leaned  slightly  over  the  table, 
propping  himself  on  the  knuckles  of  his  one  hand.  The 
light  flowed  down  upon  his  silvery  hair,  his  features 
were  set  in  the  intentness  of  listening. 

171 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  'We  view  without  favor  the  demagogic  attempts 
to  throttle  enterprise,  check  the  proper  development 
of  our  State,  lock  up  the  natural  resources  away  from 
the  fostering  hands  of  commerce  and  labor,  thereby 
preventing  the  establishment  of  industries  that  will 
extend  their  beneficent  influence  to  the  workingman, 
dependent  upon  his  daily  wage.'" 

"One  moment,  Wasgatt!"  The  General  tapped  a 
knuckle  on  the  table,  and  the  reader  waited. 

Waymouth  turned  his  gaze  full  upon  the  Senator 
when  he  spoke. 

"  Gentlemen,  understand  me  aright  at  the  start. 
I'm  not  here  to  try  to  dictate.  That  would  be  pre 
sumptuous  in  me,  for  I  am  not  yet  your  candidate. 
To-morrow  is  not  here." 

Wasgatt's  pop-eyes  protruded  still  more.  He  stared 
from  man  to  man,  and  it  became  necessary  for  Thelis- 
mer  Thornton  to  take  one  more  into  the  secret.  He  did 
it  a  bit  ungraciously.  He  had  not  expected  the  General 
to  be  so  blunt  and  precipitate.  The  candidate  waited 
patiently  until  the  brief  explanation  was  concluded  and 
Wasgatt  had  pledged  fidelity. 

"  I  want  you  fully  to  understand  my  spirit  in  this," 
went  on  the  General.  "  We'll  be  honest  with  each  other; 
we  know  that  the  floor  of  a  convention  is  not  the  place 
to  discuss  the  platform  frankly;  I  don't  want  to  wash 
our  linen  in  public.  We'll  settle  it  now  between  our 
selves.  That  plank,  there,  comes  out  of  the  platform 
if  you  expect  me  to  stand  on  it. " 

The  Senator,  challenged  by  his  eyes,  spoke. 

"  You  don't  take  exceptions  to  honest  efforts  to 
develop  our  State,  do  you,  General  Waymouth?" 

"  I  do  not.  But  that  proposition,  no  matter  how 
good  it  sounds,  is  the  sugar-coated  preface  to  an  attempt 
to  steal  the  undeveloped  water-powers  of  this  State." 

The  Senator's  fat  neck  reddened. 

172 


THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

"  You  may  be  inclined  to  modify  that  rather  rash 
statement,  General  Waymouth,  when  I  tell  you  that  I 
suggested  the  insertion  of  that  resolution." 

"I  recognized  it  as  yours,  Senator.  Some  time  ago  my 
bankers  gave  me  the  personnel  of  the  group  behind  the 
Universal  Development  Company.  In  making  my 
statement,  I  understand  perfectly  what  legislation  that 
resolution  is  leading  up  to." 

"Vard,"  broke  in  the  Duke,  conciliatingly,  "don't 
take  so  much  for  granted.  Why,  there  are  folks  sus 
picious  enough  to  accuse  Saint  Peter  of  starting  Lent 
and  ticking  off  Fridays  from  the  meat  programme  simply 
because  he  was  in  the  fish  business.  Let's  not  get  to 
fussing  about  a  set  of  convention  resolutions.  They're 
mostly  wind,  anyway.' 

But  General  Waymouth  was  not  appeased. 

"  I  know  what  resolutions  stand  for — how  much  and 
how  little.  I'm  taking  this  occasion,  gentlemen,  to  set  my 
self  right  with  you.  That  resolution  will  do  for  a  text! 
I  want  no  taunts  later  that  I  led  you  on  into  a  trap." 

He  struck  the  table  with  the  flat  of  his  hand. 

"I'm  laying  my  cards  face  up.  Here's  my  hand! 
I  halt  right  here  on  that  resolution.  I'm  certain  I  know 
what  it  means,  no  matter  how  it  sounds.  I'm  willing 
to  take  my  hat  and  walk  out  right  now.  But  if  I  stay— 
if  you  promise  to  nominate  me — I  propose  to  have  the 
saying  of  what  kind  of  a  Governor  I  shall  be!" 

"That's  rather  blunt  talk  to  make  to  gentlemen," 
protested  the  Senator,  showing  a  spark  of  ire. 

"At  my  age  there  isn't  time  to  make  long  speeches  to 
shade  the  facts,"  returned  General  Waymouth.  He 
was  calm  but  intensely  in  earnest. 

"  Then  you  are  all  for  reform — one  of  the  new  reformers, 
eh?"  inquired  the  Senator.  He  cast  a  look  of  reproach 
at  Thornton,  as  though  that  trusted  manager  had  loosed 
a  tiger  on  their  defenceless  party. 

173 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

The  General  smiled — smiled  so  sweetly  that  he  almost 
disarmed  their  resentment. 

"  No,  the  Arba  Spinneys  of  this  State  are  the  reform 
ers.  I'm  not  under  salary  to  run  round  and  make 
disturbances  in  settled  order.  I'm  not  a  bigot  with  a 
single  idea,  nor  a  fanatic  insisting  that  the  world  ought 
to  follow  the  diet  that  my  dyspepsia  imposes  upon  me. 
I'm  merely  an  old  man,  gentlemen,  who  has  got  past  a 
lot  of  the  follies  of  youth  and  the  passions  of  manhood, 
and  has  had  a  chance  to  reflect  for  a  few  years.  I  have 
not  asked  to  return  to  public  life.  But  if  I  do  return, 
if  you  put  power  into  my  hands,  I  propose  to  render 
unto  the  people  the  things  that  are  the  people's,  and 
that  term  includes  every  man  in  this  room.  It  is  not  a 
programme  that  should  alarm  honest  gentlemen!" 

There  was  appeal  in  the  tone — there  was  a  hint  of 
rebuke  in  that  final  sentence  that  troubled  the  conscience 
of  even  Senator  Pownal.  Thelismer  Thornton  was  in  a 
chair  close  to  him. 

"  Don't  let  a  few  little  cranky  notions  about  a  platform 
scare  you,"  he  mumbled  in  the  Senator's  ear.  "  You  know 
Yard  Waymouth  as  well  as  I  do.  He's  safe  and  all  right. 
Give  him  his  head.  You  don't  want  Spinney,  do  you  ? " 

"  But  that  was  devilish  insulting,"  growled  Pownal. 

"Tipping  backward  a  little,  trying  to  stand  straight, 
that's  all.  Blast  it,  a  Governor  can't  run  the  State. 
What  are  you  afraid  of?  You've  got  a  lobby  and  a 
legislature,  haven't  you?" 

If  Waymouth  noticed  this  sotto  voce  conference  he  gave 
no  sign. 

"General,"  said  Pownal,  getting  hold  of  himself  man 
fully,  even  desperately,  "the  resolution  is  not  essential. 
I  fear  you  misunderstand  what  it  really  means,  but 
we'll  not  discuss  it  now.  I  withdraw  it." 

The  General  bowed  acknowledgment,  and  signed  to 
Wasgatt  to  resume. 

174 


THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

" '  We  believe  in  dividing  the  burden  of  taxation 
equitably  and  justly,  and  will  bend  our  efforts  to  that 
end.' " 

"That  is  simply  empty  vaporing!"  cried  the  General. 
"  And  it  has  been  in  every  platform  for  twenty  years 
without  meaning  anything.  The  platform  that  I  stand 
on  this  year  must  declare  for  a  non-partisan  tax  com 
mission,  empowered  to  investigate  conditions  in  this 
State — wild  lands,  corporations,  and  all — and  report  as  a 
basis  for  new  legislation." 

In  the  silence  that  ensued  they  could  hear  Arba 
Spinney  continuing  his  harangue. 

"  Gentlemen,  you've  got  to  do  something  in  this  party 
to  stop  the  mouths  of  him  and  men  like  him,"  declared 
the  General,  solemnly.  '  You  may  make  up  your 
minds  that  you've  either  got  to  pay  in  money,  or  else 
you'll  pay  in  votes  that  mean  the  bankruptcy  of  the 
party." 

"I  suppose  you  have  the  resolution  all  drawn," 
suggested  Thelismer  Thornton,  dryly. 

"  I  have,  and  drawn  according  to  good  constitutional 
law,"  replied  the  General.  He  drew  the  paper  from  his 
breast-pocket. 

"  Incorporate  it,  Wasgatt,  ready  for  the  final  draft, 
and  we'll  all  go  over  the  thing  to-morrow  morning." 
The  Duke  was  grimly  laconic.  That  resolution  whacked 
his  pet  interests. 

Senator  Powrnal  gave  the  proposer  of  this  prompt 
surrender  a  glance  of  mutual  sympathy  out  of  the  corner 
of  his  eye,  but  the  Duke  remained  imperturbable. 
Wasgatt  received  the  paper  and  went  on. 

" '  We  reaffirm  our  belief  in  the  principle  of  the  pro 
hibition  of  the  liquor  traffic,  and  pledge  our  earnest 
efforts  to  promote  temperance. ' ' 

Across  the  corridor  revellers  were  bawling  over  and 
over  in  chorus: 

175 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  '  Let's  take  a  drink, 
Let's  take  it  now, 
God  only  knows  how  dry  I  am!'" 

"That's  a  good  thing  to  reaffirm — I  don't  mean  the 
song  they're  singing  in  that  room  across  there!  It's 
a  good  thing  to  pledge  ourselves  to  promote  temperance," 
said  the  General,  "but  that  isn't  the  point  at  issue.  I 
have  another  plank  that  I've  written  for  our  platform." 

He  drew  a  second  paper  from  his  pocket. 

"  Gentlemen,  some  politicians,  more  than  half  a  century 
ago,  simply  to  use  a  temperance  movement  for  bait  in 
a  political  campaign,  dragged  into  our  party  a  moral, 
social, and  economic  question  that  belongs  to  the  whole 
people — not  merely  to  us  as  a  party.  Let  the  people, 
when  the  right  time  comes  and  they  decide  the  matter 
differently,  make  a  law  that  the  majority  desires  and 
will  stand  behind.  Just  now  we  have  in  our  constitution 
a  law  that  forbids  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  intoxicating 
liquors  in  this  State.  There  is  no  option  in  the  matter. 
Just  so  long  as  our  party,  the  dominant  political  power, 
uses  that  option,  it  is  in  disgrace  with  all  decent  men. 
I—" 

There  was  a  knock  at  the  door — the  private  door. 

Harlan  started  up,  but  his  grandfather  pulled  him 
back  into  his  chair. 

"Go  on,  General,"  he  said. 

"I  have  drawn  a  resolution.  Here  it  is:  'As  a  party, 
we  deplore  the  fact  that  temperance,  through  the  so- 
called  prohibitory  law,  has  become  a  matter  of  politics, 
its  football  to  the  extent  that  holders  of  public  office, 
sworn  to  enforce  the  laws,  turn  from  that  enforcement 
in  order  to  cater  to  public  opinion  which  otherwise  might 
deprive  them  of  office.  We  declare  against  this  in 
tolerable  system  of  protection  of  lawbreakers.  Until  the 
people  shall  repeal  the  law,  we,  the  dominant  party  of 
the  State  and  in  control  of  enforcement,  do  pledge 

176 


THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

ourselves  to  faithfully  enforce  it,  employing  such  law 
as  we  now  have  and  invoking  new  powers  through  the 
legislature  to  assist  us,  so  long  as  the  prohibitory  law 
shall  remain  in  our  constitution." 

It  was  now  Chairman  Presson's  turn  to  look  uncom 
fortable. 

"Look  here,  Vard,"  exploded  Thornton,  "I've  been 
pretty  patient  while  you've  been  amputating  a  few 
fingers  and  toes  of  the  Republican  party  of  this  State, 
but  I'll  be  damned  if  I  propose  to  ^ee  you  cut  its  throat." 

There  was  fresh  knocking  at  the  door,  but  the  group 
within  the  parlor  had  enough  to  think  about  just  then 
without  entertaining  callers. 

"Now  you're  talking  simply  about  yourselves  and 
your  office-holders  and  your  dirty  profits.  You're  calling 
that  mess  of  nasty  confederacy  'Our  Party,'"  declared 
General  Waymouth,  passionately.  "  When  honesty  kills 
a  party,  let  it  die — let  its  men  get  out  and  organize 
another  one.  But  I  tell  you,  you  can't  kill  it  by  being 
honest,  Thelismer.  The  trouble  is  you're  sitting  here 
and  building  for  to-night — for  to-morrow.  I'm  a  Repub 
lican — you  can't  take  that  name  away  from  me.  But 
the  badge  doesn't  belong  on  men  who  are  using  that 
name  to  cover  up  a  rum-selling  business." 

Chairman  Presson  was  livid.  He  leaped  from  his 
chair  and  drove  his  fist  down  on  the  table, 

"Now  you're  insulting  me  personally!"  he  shouted. 

"  I  deal  in  no  personalities,  sir.  So  long  as  I  hide 
myself  under  the  name  of  Republican  and  allow  this  thing 
to  go  on  as  it's  going,  I'm  in  the  traffic  myself;  and  I 
don't  propose  to  continue  in  it — 'not  when  I  have  power 
placed  in  my  hands." 

"  By  the  eternal  gods,  you  won't  have  the  power  placed 
there!"  roared  the  chairman  of  the  State  Committee. 

Now  some  one  called  to  them  from  outside  the  door, 
repeating  the  rapping. 

177 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"When  you  say  that,  you're  confessing  that  the 
Republican  party  is  a  sneak,  Presson,"  declared  the 
General. 

The  Duke  came  along  to  the  table.  He  ticked  his 
forefinger  against  the  paper  that  Waymouth  was  holding. 

"  Yard,  you're  pledging  yourself  in  advance  of  election 
to  the  most  rabid  of  the  prohibition  fanatics." 

"  I'm  pledging  myself  to  obey  the  one  State  law  that 
occupies  the  most  space  in  public  attention,  causes  the 
most  discussion,  makes  the  most  row.  It's  a  damnable 
bloodsucker  to  be  hitched  on  to  any  political  party! 
But  it's  on  ours,  and  I'm  going  to  grab  it  with  both 
hands!" 

"Hold  a  proxy  from  the  ramrodders,  eh?"  sneered 
the  State  chairman,  thoroughly  a  rebel. 

"  No,  nor  from  the  State  rumsellers.  If  the  people 
of  his  State  want  to  have  rum  sold,  let  'em  vote  to  have 
it  sold.  But  as  it  now  stands,  they  can't  enlist  me  to 
head  the  lawbreakers  and  shield  the  lawbreaking.  I'm 
through  playing  the  hypocrite!" 

"We've  got  to  set  ourselves  above  petty  bickerings 
and  personal  differences,"  interposed  the  Senator, 
cracking  the  party  whip.  "  I'm  a  Republican,  first  of  all ! " 

"Talk  sense,  Pownal!"  snapped  the  General,  impa 
tiently.  "This  isn't  a  political  rally.  We're  grown 
men  and  friends  that  can  talk  plain.  His  principles 
make  a  Republican — or  ought  to — not  his  protestations ! 
And  establishing  a  system  of  low  license  and  sheriff- 
made  local  option  under  a  prohibitory  law  is  unprincipled, 
and  you  know  it!" 

Thelismer  Thornton,  god  of  that  particular  machine 
that  was  then  grinding  so  ominously  and  rattling  so 
badly,  felt  that  he  needed  a  few  moments  in  which  to 
mend  belts  and  adjust  cogs.  He  wanted  an  oppor 
tunity  to  think  a  little  while.  He  had  discovered  a  new 
Waymouth  all  of  a  sudden.  He  wanted  to  get  ac- 

178 


THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

quainted  with  him.  He  wished  to  find  out  whether 
he  would  be  really  as  dangerous  as  his  astonishing  threats 
indicated. 

The  persistent  man  at  the  door  was  now  clamorous. 
The  Duke  strode  that  way  and  flung  it  open.  Whoever 
it  might  be,  the  interruption  would  give  him  time  to 
think,  to  plan,  to  investigate. 

The  intruder  was  the  Hon.  David  Everett.  He 
stepped  in,  and  Thornton  relocked  the  door  after  him. 

Mr.  Everett  was  not  amiable.  His  little  eyes  snapped 
from  face  to  face  suspiciously.  It  was  immediately 
and  perfectly  plain  to  him  that  he  had  forced  admission 
to  a  conference  that  had  not  expected  him,  did  not  want 
him,  and  was  embarrassed  at  finding  him  present.  In 
the  state  of  mind  they  were  in,  the  men  in  that  room 
would  have  glowered  at  any  one.  Everett  detected 
something  more  than  mere  personal  resentment  at  his 
intrusion — he  sniffed  a  plot  against  him.  There  was 
no  hand  outstretched  to  him,  no  welcome,  no  explanation 
offered  why  these  leaders  of  the  party  had  met  thus 
without  intimation  to  him  that  anything  was  afoot. 
Choleric  red  suffused  his  face — it  had  been  gray  with 
passion  when  he  entered,  because  a  corridor  filled  with 
curious  men  is  not  a  happy  arena  for  a  candidate  shut 
out  of  committee  headquarters. 

He  realized  that  he  had  been  a  spectacle  inciting 
interest  and  some  amusement  while  he  was  hammering 
on  the  door. 

One  object  of  the  Duke  had  been  attained  when  he 
admitted  Everett— the  WTangling  ceased.  But  the  em 
barrassment  was  intensified.  The  situation  was  more 
complex. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,  gentlemen,  if  I  am  interrupting 
serious  business,"  began  Everett,  intending  to  force 
some  sort  of  explanation. 

He  waited.  No  one  spoke.  The  others  were  waiting,  too. 
13  179 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

The  candidate  looked  from  one  to  the  other,  and  then 
surveyed  Wasgatt  and  the  papers  he  was  clutching. 
He  eyed  General  Waymouth  with  much  interest  and 
some  surprize.  He  had  not  been  informed  of  that 
gentleman's  presence  in  the  hotel.  The  General  returned 
the  gaze  with  serenity,  creasing  his  sheet  of  manuscript 
on  the  table  with  his  thin  fingers. 

"  I  expected  to  be  called  in  when  you  were  ready  to  go 
over  the  platform,"  continued  Everett,  sourly.  "I'm 
supposed  to  know  as  early  as  any  one,  I  presume,  what 
it  is  I'm  going  to  stand  on." 

Thelismer  Thornton  decided  that  it  was  up  to  him 
to  speak.  He  leaned  against  the  table,  half  sitting  011  it, 
and  swung  his  foot. 

"  You  have  a  perfect  right,  Dave,  to  inquire  about  any 
platform  that  you're  going  to  stand  on.  And  when  we 
get  your  platform  ready  for  you  we'll  call  you  in  and 
submit  it.  But  allow  me  to  remind  you  that  you 
haven't  been  nominated  yet."  The  band  was  blaring 
again  outside.  "The  convention  is  yet  to  be  held,  and 
has  yet  to  declare  its  platform." 

"  I  don't  expect  you  to  call  Arba  Spinney  in  here  and 
consult  with  him — if  that's  what  your  hints  mean.  But 
there's  no  need  of  your  using  that  'round-the-barn  talk 
with  me,  Thelismer.  You  know  that  so  far  as  the  real 
Republican  party  is  concerned  Spinney  is  an  outsider; 
I'm  the  logical  candidate,  and  I  demand  to  be  taken  into 
the  conference.  I  don't  recognize  that  there  are  two 
Republican  candidates  before  the  convention.  " 

"I  do,"  said  the  Duke,  firmly  and  with  significance. 
He  was  preparing  to  resent  this  autocratic  manner. 

"Well,  I  don't!"  cried  the  State  chairman.  Secretly 
he  had  been  offended  by  Thornton's  high-handed 
assumption  of  control,  ever  since  their  talk  on  the 
morning  after  the  Fort  Canibas  caucus.  He  had  prompt 
ly  recognized  the  political  sagacity  of  the  old  man's 

1 80 


THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

plan.  In  his  fear  of  the  Spinney  agitation— in  his 
apprehension  lest  all  control  should  be  wrested  from 
his  faction  of  the  party — he  had  been  eager  to  compromise 
on  General  Waymouth,  hoping  that  he  would  prove  to 
be  as  amenable  to  party  reason  as  he  knew  Everett 
already  was.  But  this  intractable  old  Spartan,  with 
his  dictation  of  party  principles  that  meant  the  loss  of 
policy,  power,  and  profits,  had  angered  him  to  his  marrow. 
He  was  ready  to  declare  himself  now,  Thornton  or  no 
Thornton.  He  turned  on  the  Duke. 

"  Perhaps  you  can  lick  me — that's  the  only  way  you 
can  get  it!:>  he  declared.  "But  you  needn't  expect 
me  to  stand  here  and  grin  and  hand  it  over." 

Thornton  stared  at  him  understandingly,  accepting  the 
challenge. 

"  There  was  a  man  up  our  Avay,  Luke,  who  fought  two 
highway  robbers  a  whole  hour,  and  when  they  had  finally 
torn  his  clothes  all  off  him,  he  only  had  two  cents  in  his 
pockets.  He  told  the  robbers,  then,  that  he  hadn't 
fought  to  save  his  two  cents,  but  because  he  didn't 
want  his  financial  condition  revealed." 

Candidate  Everett  was  finding  this  conversation  hard 
to  follow. 

"There's  something  here  that  isn't  on  the  level,  and 
I  suspected  it  the  minute  I  came  into  this  room.  Presson, 
is  the  State  Committee  behind  me  ? " 

"It  is,  and  it's  behind  you  to  stay,"  declared  the 
chairman.  Again  he  turned  to  Thornton. 

"It's  up  to  you.  now,  wrhether  Arba  Spinney  gets  the 
nomination  or  not.  If  you  keep  on  and  split  us,  he  gets 
it;  but  I  shall  make  it  mighty  plain  to  the  boys  as  to 
whose  fault  it  was,  Thelismcr.  " 

"What's  all  this  about?"  demanded  Everett. 

Presson  hesitated  only  a  moment. 

"There  was  a  movement  on  inside  the  party  to  run 
General  Waymouth  as  a  compromise  candidate.  It  has 

181 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

been  talked  over.  I  declare  myself  now.  I'm  against 
it.  The  State  Committee  stands  for  you,  Everett!" 

The  candidate  revolved  slowly  on  his  heels  in  order 
to  study  the  faces  of  all  of  them.  He  did  not  find 
much  enthusiasm  to  back  up  Presson's  declaration. 
He  realized  that  he  was  in  the  company  of  those  who 
had  been  plotting  to  shelve  him,  and  he  had  the  wit  to 
understand  that  only  their  quarrel  over  some  issue  had 
availed  to  save  him  from  being  knifed. 

His  temper  got  away  from  him. 

"  You've  held  your  nose  up  pretty  high  in  this  world, 
General  Waymouth!  Do  you  call  a  trick  to  steal  my 
nomination  away  from  me  at  the  last  moment  gentle 
manly  or  decent?  I've  put  in  my  time  and  my  money 
and  my  efforts.  I've  made  a  campaign.  And  I've 
waited  for  this!" 

"You  needn't  insult  the  General  in  that  fashion, 
Dave,"  broke  in  Thornton.  "Address  your  talk  to  me. 
I'm  responsible." 

"  I  think  I'm  the  one  that  is  responsible  at  this  stage," 
insisted  General  Waymouth.  "  I'll  talk  to  you,  Mr. 
Everett,  if  you  please.  You  addressed  me.  Any 
Republican  in  this  State  is  entitled  to  seek  nomination 
as  Governor.  It  is  a  worthy  and  proper  ambition.  It 
is  an  honor  that  belongs  to  the  people.  It  isn't  a  heritage 
to  be  passed  on  from  one  bunch  of  politicians  to  another. 
It  isn't  to  be  bought  and  bartered.  I  realize  that  prece 
dent  has  given  you  that  impression.  But  it's  a  pernicious 
precedent.  It's  time  to  do  away  with  it.  That's  why 
I'm  here  to-night,  dipping  into  slime  that  I  hoped 
never  to  be  soiled  with  again.  I've  been  frank  with  these 
other  gentlemen.  I'm  going  to  be  frank  with  you,  Mr. 
Everett.  I  know  you  stand  for  The  System.  I  don't 
have  to  tell  you  what  that  is.  You  propose  to  continue 
the  nullification  programme,  bar-rooms  tolerated  on  pay 
ment  of  fines,  ta*  reform  slicked  over,  water-powers  and 

182 


other  State  resources  peddled  out  to  favorites.  It's 
useless  to  deny.  We've  all  been  in  politics  together  too 
many  years. " 

Mr.  Everett  did  not  deny.  It  was  too  intimate  a 
gathering  for  that. 

"  This  is  not  the  way  I'd  like  to  be  called  to  the  Gover 
nor's  chair  of  my  State,"  went  on  the  General,  "but  it's 
the  way  of  politics.  I've  got  to  meet  you  on  the  politi 
cian's  level,  so  far  as  securing  the  nomination  goes.  But 
I  stand  here  and  tell  you,  Mr,  Everett" — he  took  two 
steps  forward  and  stood  close  to  the  other  candidate, 
and  his  voice  rose — "  that  I  can  be  a  better  Governor  of 
this  State  than  you — in  the  sort  of  days  that  are  on  us 
now.  This  is  not  egotism — it's  truth.  I  say  it  because 
I  know  you  and  the  men  behind  you  as  well  as  I  know 
myself." 

"It's  a  sneak  trick,  just  the  same!"  shouted  Everett. 

"  So  are  many  tricks  in  politics — and,  God  help  me, 
I'm  back  in  politics !"  returned  the  General.  He  looked 
them  over  there  in  the  room,  from  face  to  face  and  eye 
to  eye.  "You  cannot  accuse  me  of  vanity,  self-seeking, 
or  ambition  at  my  age,  gentlemen.  I've  been  Governor 
of  this  State  once.  I  didn't  enjoy  the  experience.  I'm 
going  into  this  thing  again  simply  because  I  believe  that 
I  can  put  some  honesty  into  public  affairs.  This  State 
is  calling  for  it.  And  that  object  justifies  me  in  what 
I'm  doing.  I  am  a  candidate!" 

"By  -  — !"  roared  Everett,  furious,  realizing  how 
this  candidacy  threatened  his  hopes,  "  run  if  you  want  to. 
But  I'll  see  to  it  that  these  delegates  know  how  you're 
running — cutting  under  a  man  that's  made  an  honest 
canvass!"  He  started  for  the  door,  tossing  his  arms 
above  his  head — a  politician  beginning  to  run  amuck. 

Presson  grabbed  his  arm  and  held  him  back. 

"Don't  be  a  lunatic,  Dave,"  he  buzzed  in  his  ear. 
"  If  you  go  to  advertising  this  around  the  hotel  to-night 

183 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

you'll  be  giving  Spinney  the  tip  and  starting  Waymouth's 
boom  for  him.  Damn  it,  you  want  to  keep  your  teeth 
shut  tight  and  your  tongue  behind  them!  There'll  be 
no  blabbers  go  out  of  this  room — I'll  see  to  that!  I'll 
put  a  dozen  members  of  the  State  Committee  at  work 
on  the  delegates  to-night."  He  was  walking  Everett 
toward  the  door,  getting  him  out  of  earshot  of  the  others. 
"  Weymouth  has  got  a  platform  there  that  sounds  as 
though  it  was  drawn  up  by  the  House  Committee  of 
Paradise.  He's  got  to  be  licked — great  Judas,  he's  got 
to  be  licked!  I've  got  five  thousand  that  the  liquor 
crowd  has  sent  into  the  State  for  the  campaign,  but  this 
is  the  place  to  use  it — right  here  now!  And  it  '11  be 
used.  Don't  you  worry,  Dave!  And  keep  your  mouth 
shut!" 

It  was  a  colloquy  that  no  one  else  in  the  room  heard — 
Everett  putting  in  suggestions  as  the  chairman  whispered 
hoarsely  in  his  ear.  Harlan  Thorton,  looking  on,  guessed 
what  it  might  be.  Linton,  at  his  side,  ironically  hinted 
at  the  possibilities  of  that  hurried  conference  in  the 
corner.  Senator  Pownal  walked  about  the  room,  chew 
ing  his  short  beard  and  incapable  of  a  word — for  his 
re-election  came  before  the  next  legislature,  and  to  jump 
the  wrong  way  now  in  the  gubernatorial  matter  was 
political  suicide. 

Thelismer  Thornton  remained  in  his  place  on  the 
corner  of  the  table,  staring  reflectively  at  General 
Waymouth. 

Presson  ended  his  whispered  exhortations  with  a 
rather  savage  reference  to  the  manner  in  which  the  Duke 
had  involved  the  campaign.  Everett  shot  a  baleful 
glance  at  the  man  who  had  so  cold-bloodedly  planned 
his  undoing. 

"Look  here,  Thornton,"  he  called  out,  as  he  started 
for  the  door,  "  you  and  I  will  have  our  reckoning  later. 
We  use  old  horses  for  fox  bait  up  our  way,  too,  but  we 

184 


THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

always  make  sure  that  the  horses  are  dead  first/'  He 
went  out  and  slammed  the  door. 

Thornton  did  not  turn  his  head,  He  kept  his  eyes  on 
Waymouth. 

"  Yard,"  he  said,  "  I  reckon  I  haven't  been  keeping  my 
political  charts  up  to  date,  I  had  you  down  as  a 
peninsula,  jutting  out  some  from  the  Republican  party, 
but  still  hitched  on  to  it.  I  find  you're  an  island, 
standing  all  by  yourself,  and  with  pretty  rocky  shores." 

"  Perhaps  so,"  admitted  the  General. 

"This  has  been  a  sort  of  a  heart-to-heart  meeting 
here  to-night.  In  the  general  honesty  I'll  be  honest 
myself,  I  can'c  support  you." 

"Then  you  lack  honesty." 

"  No,  but  your  scheme  of  honesty  takes  you  right  into 
the  king-row  of  the  ramrodders,  and  I  can't  train  with 
the  bunch  that  will  flock  to  you.  Your  theory  is  good — 
but  the  practice  will  break  your  heart  just  as  sure  as 
God  hasn't  made  humans  perfect!  You'll  be  up  against 
it!  You're  going  to  test  man  to  the  limit  of  his  profes 
sions — and  it  isn't  a  safe  operation,  if  you  want  to  come 
out  with  any  of  your  ideals  left  unsmashed.  If  you  start 
on  that  road  you'll  have  tc  travel  it  without  me." 

"  Well,  there's  a  little  common  sense  left  in  the  Repub 
lican  party,"  snapped  Presson.  "  General  Waymouth, 
you've  had  considerable  many  honors  in  your  life, 
and  the  party  gave  'em  to  you.  That  calls  for  some 
gratitude.  You  can  show  it  by  keeping  your  hands 
off  this  thing." 

"That  would  have  been  an  argument  once,  when  I 
was  a  wheel-horse  with  my  political  blinders  on;  it  has 
been  an  argument  that  has  kept  a  good  many  decent 
men  from  doing  their  duty.  It  will  not  work  with  me 
now."  He  put  his  folded  paper  into  his  pocket,  and 
reached  and  took  the  other  document  that  he  had  handed 
to  Wasgatt  earlier  in  the  evening.  "  I'll  not  disfigure 

185 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

the  perfect  structure  of  your  platform  now,  Presson, 
but  I'll  see  how  these  sound  from  the  floor  of  the  con 
vention,  in  spite  of  your  resolutions  to  shut  off  free 
speech!  Good-night,  gentlemen."  He  turned  to  leave, 
still  serene  with  the  poise  of  one  who  has  experienced 
all  and  is  prepared  for  all.  "  I  used  to  have  pretty  good 
luck  playing  a  lone  hand  in  our  old  card-playing  days, 
Thelismer.  I'll  see  what  I  can  do  in  politics." 

"General  Waymouth,  have  you  a  few  moments  to 
give  me  if  I  come  to  your  room  now?"  inquired  Harlan 
Thornton.  "I  want  to  offer  my  services!" 

"  I'll  join  the  party  too,  if  I  may ! "  suggested  Linton. 

Colonel  Wadsworth  was  twisting  his  imperial  with  one 
hand  and  fingering  his  Loyal  Legion  button  with  the 
other. 

"I'm  not  the  kind  that  waits  for  a  draft,  General," 
he  said.  "I  didn't  in  '61.  I  volunteer  now." 

General  Waymouth  smiled,  bowed  the  three  ahead  of 
him  through  the  door  of  the  parlor,  and  softly  closed 
it  behind  himself  and  his  little  party. 

"Well,  Thelismer,"  raved  the  State  chairman,  "you 
can  certainly  take  rank,  at  your  time  of  life  and  after 
all  you've  been  through,  as  a  top-notch  hell  of  a  poli 
tician.  You  start  out  to  run  a  State  campaign,  and  you 
wind  up  by  not  being  able  to  run  even  your  grandson!" 

"What  I  started  running  seems  to  be  still  running," 
said  the  old  man,  undisturbed  by  the  attack. 

"And  it's  costing  the  Republican  party  something, 
this  mix-up,"  Presson  went  on. 

"  You  think  it  looks  expensive,  taking  the  thing  right 
now  at  apparent  face  value?" 

"Look  here!  I  don't  relish  humor—not  now!  I'm 
not  in  a  humorous  mood.  You  can  see  what  it's  costing 
— blast  that  infernal  band!" 

Mr.  Spinney's  serenaders  had  not  had  their  fill  of 
music.  There  was  din  outside.  The  tune,  "A  Hot 

186 


THE    HANDS    ARE    DEALT 

Time  in  the  Old  Town  To-night,"  won  a  grunt  of  approval 
from  Mr.  Wasgatt,  still  holding  his  documents,  more 
pop-eyed  than  ever. 

"Pretty  expensive,  eh?"  said  the  Duke,  lifting  his 
knee  between  his  hands  and  leaning  back  on  the  table. 
"  You  heard  about — " 

"  I  don't  want  any  more  of  your  cussed  stories!  Not 
to-night !"  Pressson  rushed  out.  He  went  into  the  main 
parlor,  where  the  members  of  the  State  Committee 
were  in  informal  session. 

Wasgatt  was  left  with  the  Duke,  and  the  latter  fixed 
him  with  benevolent  gaze. 

"  Old  Zavanna  Dodge,  up  our  way,  got  to  courting  two 
old  maids,  trying  to  make  up  his  mind  which  he'd  take — 
and  the  one  he  didn't  take  sued  him  for  breach  o'  promise. 
After  Zavanna  put  in  his  evidence  in  court,  he  sat  across 
from  the  court-house  in  the  tavern  window,  waiting  for 
the  arguments  to  be  made  and  the  case  to  be  decided.  * 
Toward  night  Squire  Enfield,  his  lawyer,  came  across. 
'  How  did  she  end  out  ? '  says  Zavanna.  '  Agin  ye — for 
eight  hundred,'  says  the  Squire.  '  Pretty  expensive, 
Zav!'  Zavanna  tucked  a  spill  of  whisker  between  his 
lips  and  chewed  on  it  and  rocked  for  a  little  while. 
'Unh  huh!'  says  he,  figuring  it  over.  And  then  he  spoke 
up  cheerful:  'Well,  Squire,  I  reckon  there's  that  much 
difference  between  the  two  women.'" 

Wasgatt  chuckled. 

"The  point  to  that  is — but  no  matter!  It  was  to 
Luke  that  I  was  going  to  show  the  point." 

The  old  man  got  his  hat  from  the  window-sill  and 
trudged  toward  the  private  door,  saying,  partly  to 
Wasgatt,  partly  to  himself:  "I  reckon  I'll  go  to  bed! 
Just  at  this  minute  the  campaign  doesn't  seem  to  be 
needing  my  help." 


CHAPTER  XVII 

THE    ODD   TRICK 

HELISMER  THORNTON  was  one  of  the 

first  to  stir  next  morning  in  the  big  hotel. 
All  night  roisterers  had  flanked  his  room, 
there  had  been  the  buzz  of  eager  argument 
overhead,  riot  of  dispute  below,  and  con 
tinual  thudding  of  hurrying  feet  in  the 
corridors.  He  had  gone  to  sleep  realizing  that  the  hive 
was  in  a  state  of  upheaval  extraordinary,  but  he  slept 
calmly  in  spite  of  it,  and  woke  refreshed. 

He  picked  his  way  past  cots  in  the  corridors.  Men 
were  snoring  there. 

His  grandson  had  not  returned  to  their  apartments. 
But  the  Duke  divined  his  whereabouts.  He  had  ascer 
tained  by  the  house  telephone  the  number  of  Linton's 
room.  He  tried  the  door  when  he  arrived  there.  It 
was  not  locked.  He  entered.  Linton  was  asleep  on  the 
bed.  Harlan  was  on  a  cot.  They  had  taken  off  only 
their  coats  and  waistcoats.  They  did  not  wake  when  he 
came  in.  He  pulled  a  chair  to  the  centre  of  the  room 
and  sat  astride  it,  his  arms  on  its  back,  In  a  few  mo 
ments  both  sleepers  woke,  stirring  under  his  intent  re 
gard.  They  sat  up  and  returned  his  gaze. 

"  Well,  my  boys,  what's  the  programme?"  he  inquired, 
pleasantly. 

Heavy  with  sleep,  perturbed,  a  bit  apprehensive, 
neither  answered. 

"  You  didn't  come  back  to  your  room  last  night, 

188 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

Harlan.  You  weren't  afraid  of  this  old  chap,  were  you? 
Didn't  think  I'd  be  running  around  the  room  on  all 
fours,  eh,  or  climb  the  wall,  or  growl  and  try  to  bite 
you?" 

"I  didn't  want  to  disturb  you,  and  Mr.  Linton  and  I 
wanted  to  talk  after  we  left  General  Way  mouth,"  said 
Harlan. 

"It's  all  right  if  you  weren't  afraid  of  me,  my  boy. 
We  can't  afford  to  have  politics  put  us  in  that  state  of 
mind.  Now,  own  up !  You  thought  I'd  pitch  in  and 
pull  you  over  to  the  machine — you  were  afraid  of  that, 
now,  weren't  you?" 

"To  be  perfectly  honest,  I  didn't  want  any  argument 
with  you,  grandfather,  but  I  wasn't  afraid  you'd  convert 
me.  You  couldn't  do  that." 

"  Bub, '  politics  before  friendship '  is  all  right  for  a  code. 
I  practice  that  myself,  but  it  hurts  me  to  have  you  put 
politics  before  relationship — the  kind  that's  between 
us." 

"Grandfather,"  replied  the  young  man,  firmly,  "you 
remember  that  you  told  me  you  were  going  to  put  me 
into  politics  right.  I  consider  that  you've  done  so. 
I'm  going  to  stay  where  you  put  me." 

"Oh,  you  mean  one  thing  and  I  mean  another,  my 
boy,  as  matters  stand  just  now.  You're  in  wrong.  A 
man  isn't  in  right  when  he's  playing  on  the  losing 
end." 

"  I  stay  where  you  put  me,"  insisted  Harlan,  doggedly. 
"I'm  with  General  Waymouth." 

"  General  Waymouth  was  a  winner  till  he  committed 
hari-kari  there  last  night.  He  had  Luke's  machine,  and 
he  had  my  scheme.  He  kicked  over  the  machine,  and 
the  scheme  won't  work  now;  it  could  have  been  snapped 
through,  but  it  can't  be  bulled  through — not  with  the 
bunch  forewarned  and  on  the  lookout.  Your  political 
chances  with  Yard  Waymouth,  Harlan,  don't  amount 

189 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

to  that!"  He  clicked  his  finger  smartly  above  his  head. 
"You  may  as  well  go  back  up-country  and  boss  the 
Quedaws." 

"  And  yet  you  know  that  General  Waymouth  is  right, 
Mr.  Thornton,"  broke  in  Linton,  pausing  in  lacing  his 
shoes.  "There's  no  chance  for  argument  about  that. 
Why  is  it  the  big  men  of  this  State — men  like  you,  that 
have  the  influence  to  set  things  straight — won't  back  the 
man  that's  honest  and  right?" 

"  Linton,  that's  the  kind  of  a  question  that's  asked  by 
the  man  whose  experience  in  practical  politics  is  limited 
to  a  term  on  the  School  Board  and  the  ownership  of  a 
subscription  edition  of  American  Statesmen,  bound  in 
half  morocco.  I'll  tell  you  why  we  don't:  we're  dealing 
with  conditions,  not  theories.  The  chap  who  writes  for 
the  '  Kickers'  Column'  in  the  newspapers  can  tell  you  all 
about  how  politics  should  be  run,  but  that's  the  only 
privilege  he  ever  gets.  It's  the  chap  who  keeps  still  and 
runs  the  politics  that  gets  what's  to  be  got  out  of  it. 
And  that's  because  mankind  wants  what  it  wants,  and 
not  what  it  says  it  wants." 

He  went  to  the  window,  snapped  up  the  shade,  and  let 
the  morning  light  flood  the  room. 

"  Wake  up,  my  boys!  Dreams  are  rosy — I've  had  'em 
myself.  But  they  don't  buy  the  breakfast  next  morn 
ing.  Martyrs  get  a  devil  of  a  reputation  after  they're 
dead.  It  doesn't  do  'em  a  mite  of  good,  not  as  human 
beings.  As  long  as  you're  taking  the  curse  that  belongs 
with  a  human  being,  get  some  of  the  good,  too.  I  tried 
to  operate  on  a  different  plan  long  ago — about  the  time 
I  had  the  dreams — but  I  had  to  give  it  up  if  I  was  to 
get  anything  out  of  life.  Yard  Waymouth  can't  build 
over  the  human  nature  in  this  State.  I've  had  to  drop 
him.  I  hadn't  realized  he  was  in  such  a  bad  way.  Get 
aboard  with  the  winners  this  trip!  Then  at  least  you 
can  be  in  the  swim — you  can  find  some  good  to  do  on 

190 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

the  side,  and  be  able  to  do  it.  But  you  won't  amount 
to  anything  sitting  on  the  bank  and  bellowing." 

The  vigils  of  the  night  had  fortified  their  faith,  the 
loyalty  of  youth  was  in  them,  and  they  were  the  dis 
ciples  of  one  who  had  enlisted  their  enthusiasm.  Linton, 
however,  was  less  assertive  than  Harlan.  The  Duke 
did  not  lose  his  patience. 

"  Boys,"  he  said,  at  the  end  of  his  exhortations,  "  I  see 
that  you've  got  to  have  your  little  lesson  (I'll  have  to 
be  going  now,  for  I've  a  few  things  to  attend  to),  and  I'll 
tell  you  frankly  I  propose  to  make  that  lesson  a  lasting 
one." 

A  few  hours  later  the  young  men  went  in  to  breakfast 
together.  The  early  trains  had  brought  other  delegates 
and  visitors.  The  great  room  was  crowded  with  a 
chattering  throng.  The  head  waiter  intercepted  them; 
he  seemed  to  be  waiting  for  them.  They  followed 
obediently,  and  he  led  them  to  an  alcove. 

Here  a  breakfast-party  was  already  installed. 

Miss  Presson  was  first  to  greet  them,  giving  a  hand  to 
each — radiant,  fresh,  and  altogether  charming  in  her 
tailored  perfection. 

"  We  left  word  at  the  door,"  she  smiled,  "  for  I  wanted 
to  behold  you  before  the  blood  and  dust  of  the  arena 
settled  over  all." 

Mrs.  Presson  and  her  ladies  were  cordial.  They  did 
not  seem  to  remark  that  the  State  chairman  kept  his 
seat  and  was  brusque  in  his  greeting.  Political  abstrac 
tion  excused  general  disregard  to  conventions  among  the 
men -folks  that  morning.  The  Duke  was  there.  He 
patronized  them  with  a  particularly  amiable  smile. 

"May  I?"  asked  Linton,  touching  the  chair  next 
Madeleine. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  girl.  "  You  know,  Herbert  and  I  are 
very  old  friends,  Mr.  Thornton."  There  was  a  hint  of 
apology  to  Harlan  behind  the  brilliant  smile  she  gave 

191 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

him.  He  had  moved  toward  the  chair.  He  flushed 
when  he  realized  that  he  felt  a  queer  sense  of  hurt  at  her 
choice.  It  was  another  new  experience  for  him  who 
had  made  the  woods  his  mistress— a  woman  had  chosen 
another,  slighting  him.  As  he  took  his  seat  beside  his 
grandfather  he  was  angry  at  himself — at  the  sudden 
boyish  pique  he  felt.  He  had  not  been  conscious  till 
then  that  he  had  been  interested  especially  in  Madeleine 
Presson.  It  needed  the  presence  of  this  other  young 
man,  selected  over  his  head,  to  make  him  understand 
that  one  may  not  draw  near  beauty  with  impunity,  even 
though  one  may  be  very  certain — telling  his  own  heart — 
that  love  is  undreamed  of.  He  wondered  whether  he 
might  not  be  afflicted  with  asinine  pride. 

He  did  not  relish  the  glance  that  Linton  bestowed  on 
him;  it  seemed  there  was  just  a  flash  of  triumph  in  it — 
that  bit  of  a  boast  one  sees  in  the  eyes  of  a  man  who 
becomes,  even  briefly,  the  proprietor  of  a  pretty  woman. 

"  We  were  just  talking  over  the  latest  news — -or,  rather, 
it's  a  rumor,"  said  Miss  Presson.  With  quick  intuition 
she  felt  that  something,  somehow,  was  not  just  right. 
She  hastened  to  break  the  silence.  "They  are  saying 
that  Mr.  Spinney  has  withdrawn,  and  that  his  name  will 
not  go  before  the  convention.  Of  course,  you've  heard 
about  it,  Herbert — and  Mr.  Thornton!" 

They  had  not  heard  it.  They  looked  guilty.  They 
had  been  all  the  morning  with  Colonel  Wadsworth, 
locked  away  from  the  throng,  finishing  matters  of  the 
night  before.  The  expression  on  their  faces  was  con 
fession  of  their  ignorance. 

"  If  you're  going  to  be  early  political  fishermen  you'll 
have  to  look  for  your  worms  sharp  in  the  morning  or 
you'll  fetch  up  short  of  bait,"  suggested  the  Duke, 
maliciously. 

"Three  cheers  and  a  snatch  of  band-music  take  on  a 
hopeful  color  when  they're  lit  up  by  red  fire  overnight," 

192 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

remarked  the  State  chairman.  "  So  do  some  other 
things.  But  a  fellow  with  good  eyesight  usually  comes 
to  himself  in  the  daylight." 

"  Is  that  true  about  Spinney?"  asked  Harlan,  scenting 
mischief  and  treachery,  and  not  yet  enough  of  a  politi 
cian  to  understand  instantly  just  what  effect  this  would 
have  on  the  situation. 

"I  don't  know  anything  about  it,"  snapped  Presson. 
"  I  don't  care  anything  about  it.  It  isn't  important 
enough.  The  man's  strength  was  overrated.  It  was 
mostly  mouth.  Just  as  soon  as  the  delegates  got  to 
gether  last  night  and  shook  themselves  down  it  was  plain 
enough  where  Spinney  stood." 

"  But  you  yourself  and  grandfather  have  been  saying 
all  along  that  he —  '  began  Harlan. 

"  We  say  a  lot  of  things  in  politics,"  broke  in  the  chair 
man,  testily.  "  But  it's  only  the  final  round-up  that 
counts.  And  be  prepared  for  sudden  changes,  as  the 
almanac  says!  I  tell  you,  I  don't  know  anything  about 
this  Spinney  rumor — nor  I  don't  care.  But  it's  probably 
true.  Everett  has  got  pledged  delegates  enough  to 
nominate  him  by  acclamation." 

"  But  last  night — •"  persisted  Harlan. 

His  grandfather  interrupted  this  time. 

"  Don't  you  remember  that  old  Brad  Dunham  wrote  to 
New  York  one  spring  and  asked  a  commission  man  if  he 
would  take  a  million  frogs'  legs?  Commission  man 
wrote  that  he'd  take  a  hundred  pairs;  and  the  best  old 
Brad  could  do,  after  wading  in  the  swamp  back  of  his 
house  all  day,  was  to  get  a  dozen.  Wrote  to  the  com 
mission  man  that  he'd  been  estimating  his  frogs  by  sound 
and  thought  he  had  a  million.  That's  been  the  way  with 
Spinney  and  his  delegates,  Harlan." 

Mrs.  Presson  took  advantage  of  the  merriment  to 
change  the  subject  from  politics.  It  was  a  topic  that 
did  not  interest  her,  and  she  had  learned  from  her  hus- 

193 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

band's  disgusted  growlings  that  morning  that  there  had 
been  trouble  the  night  before. 

Harlan  did  not  join  in  the  chatter  that  v/ent  about  the 
table.  Under  cover  of  it  his  grandfather  gave  him  a  few 
words  of  compassionate  counsel. 

"  You'll  have  to  swing  in  with  the  new  deal,  bub. 
You  can't  cut  party  sirloin  too  close  to  the  horn,  and 
that's  what  Yard  did.  He  wants  to  sit  on  the  moun 
tain  and  slam  us  flat  under  a  rock  with  the  new  ten 
commandments  on  it.  We  can't  stand  for  it.  I  didn't 
dream  that  he  had  grown  to  be  so  impractical  in  his  old 
age.  No  one  wants  any  such  deal  as  he's  framing  up  for 
the  State.  As  I  told  you,  he's  trying  to  build  human 
nature  over,  and  he  can't  do  it.  I'm  sorry  it's  turned  as 
it  has — he  could  have  been  just  a  little  diplomatic  and 
made  us  a  good  Governor.  But  Everett  will  make  a  good 
one — you  needn't  be  afraid  of  him.  We'll  put  through 
a  few  measures  that  will  smooth  things  down  a  little. 
Now  you've  got  to  remember  that  you're  going  to  the 
legislature.  You  might  just  as  well  not  be  there  if  you 
don't  stand  clever  with  the  administration.  I  haven't 
put  you  in  just  as  I  intended.  But  get  into  line  now, 
quick.  I  can  smooth  it  all  right  for  you.  I've  squared 
myself  with  Everett — he  needed  me!" 

Harlan  listened  patiently,  keeping  his  eyes  on  his  food. 

"  Right  after  breakfast  Luke  is  going  to  have  a  talk 
with  you  and  Linton." 

"  It  will  do  Mr.  Presson  no  good  to  talk  to  me.  I'm 
with  General  Waymouth." 

"But  General  Waymouth  has  been  eliminated,  you 
young  idiot.  It  was  the  combination  of  circumstances 
that  made  him  a  candidate.  But  those  circumstances 
have  been  changed.  I  can't  explain  to  you  how,  Harlan — 
not  here  and  now.  But  a  brand-new  trump  has  been 
turned.  It  had  to  be  done.  You  stay  behind  here  with 
Linton  and  talk  with  Luke." 

194 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

The  ladies  were  rising  from  the  table. 

Harlan  did  not  reply.  He  did  not  remain.  He  step 
ped  aside  and  allowed  the  ladies  to  pass,  and  followed 
them  from  the  alcove.  Presson  stared  after  him  angrily. 
Linton,  obeying  his  request,  sat  down  after  Mrs.  Presson 
and  her  party  had  retired. 

"  You've  got  a  fool,  there,  for  a  grandson,  Thelismer," 
stated  the  chairman  with  decision. 

"  He  doesn't  seem  to  be  a  politician,"  returned  the  old 
man,  gazing  after  him.  "  There  are  a  few  joints  in  a  man 
that  he  ought  to  be  able  to  bend  in  politics,  but  Harlan 
seems  to  be  afflicted  with  a  sort  of  righteous  ossification. 
He'll  have  to  have  his  lesson,  that's  all!" 

The  young  man  was  not  in  the  mood  to  accept  Miss 
Presson's  invitation  to  accompany  them  to  the  hotel 
parlor.  In  the  corridor  he  refused  so  brusquely  that  she 
stood  and  gazed  at  him,  allowing  the  others  to  go  on 
without  her. 

"  You  seem  to  be  taking  politics  very  seriously,  Mr. 
Harlan  Thornton." 

"  I'm  taking  honesty  and  my  pledges  seriously,  that's 
all." 

"Then  your  honesty  puts  you  in  opposition  to  my 
father,  does  it,  sir?"  It  was  said  with  a  spark  of  resent 
ment.  "Do  you  realize  how  that  sounds?" 

"I  do  not  say  so,  Miss  Presson." 

"But  I  have  heard  queer  rumors  this  morning.  Take 
a  woman's  advice  once,  Mr.  Thornton:  it  may  be  worth 
something,  because  I  have  seen  more  of  this  game  than 
you  have.  Don't  kill  your  career  at  the  outset  by  trying 
to  realize  an  impossible  ideal.  It's  bad  enough  in  love, 
but  it's  much  worse  in  politics!"  She  hurried  away, 
joining  the  others. 

Harlan  paced  the  corridor  impatiently,  waiting  for 
Linton  to  come  out.     Few  men  of  the  hundreds  throng 
ing  past  recognized  him,  and  he  was  not  accosted. 
14  195 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

He  caught  fragments  of  talk.  It  was  evident  that  the 
rumor  concerning  Spinney  had  found  as  many  dis 
believers  as  believers.  Some  charged  that  the  story  was 
started  simply  for  the  purpose  of  hurting  the  reform 
candidate  by  decrying  his  strength  and  inducing  the 
wavering  opportunists  to  come  over  to  the  winning  side. 
Others  said  a  trade  had  been  effected,  and  that  the  story 
of  it  had  leaked  out  prematurely.  At  any  rate,  the  buzz 
of  gossip  showed  that  the  situation  was  badly  mixed. 

Linton  came  alone.  He  had  left  the  Duke  and  the 
chairman  in  conference.  He  took  Harlan  by  the  arm, 
and  walked  to  the  end  of  the  corridor.  They  were  alone 
there. 

"  Of  course  you  know  how  I  came  to  be  in  on  the  Way- 
mouth  side,"  he  began,  promptly.  "Once  I  was  in  I 
didn't  propose  to  quit  so  long  as  there  was  any  hope.  I 
did  what  mighty  few  young  men  in  politics  would  do, 
Mr.  Thornton — I  stood  out  last  night  against  Presson 
and  your  grandfather  when  they  dropped  the  General. 
I  just  say  that  to  show  you  I'm  not  a  cur.  But  it's 
hopeless.  The  thing  has  turned  completely  over." 

"You're  going  to  desert  the  General?" 

"  It  isn't  desertion.  That  isn't  a  word  that  belongs 
in  this  situation.  General  Waymouth  will  not  call  it 
that  after  I've  talked  with  him." 

Harlan  did  not  speak.  At  the  breakfast-table  he  had 
been  ashamed  of  that  little  gnawing  feeling  of  rancor 
when  he  looked  across  at  the  young  couple  who  seemed 
so  wholly  contented  with  their  conversation.  Now  he 
indulged  himself.  He  began  to  hate  this  young  man 
cordially.  He  excused  the  feeling,  on  the  ground  that 
it  was  proper  resentment  on  behalf  of  the  General. 

"  I  don't  want  you  to  think  that  I'm  disloyal  or  a 
deserter  in  this  matter,  Mr.  Thornton.  But  I'm  going  to 
the  next  legislature,  and  I'm  interested  in  certain  meas 
ures  that  will  help  this  State  if  they're  adopted.  I  can't 

196 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

help  General  Waymouth  now;  you  can't  help  him.  He 
has  no  one  behind  him,  as  the  thing  has  turned." 

"He's  got  the  square  deal  behind  him!" 

"  Meaning  nothing  in  a  political  mix-up  such  as  this  is. 
I  can't  afford  to  dump  all  my  future  overboard  and  kill 
myself  for  the  next  legislature  by  an  absolutely  useless 
and  quixotic  splurge  in  to-day's  convention.  The  Gen 
eral  has  made  no  canvass — he  isn't  even  very  much  in 
terested  personally  in  the  affair.  I  hope  I  stand  straight 
with  you  now.  I'm  going  up  and  tell  the  General  exactly 
how  I  feel  about  the  thing.  I  advise  you  to  do  the  same. 
You'll  be  very  foolish  to  butt  your  head  against  every 
political  influence  in  this  State  that  counts  for  anything. 
I  told  your  grandfather — " 

"  I  don't  want  your  advice  in  politics,"  blazed  Harlan, 
letting  his  grudge  have  rein,  "and  I  don't  thank  you  to 
tell  me  how  to  get  along  with  my  own  grand  father!" 

He  hoped  that  young  Mr.  Linton  would  resent  that 
manner  of  speech. 

Young  Mr.  Linton,  as  stalwart  as  he,  raised  his  black 
eyebrows,  pursed  his  lips,  and  was  not  daunted  by  the 
outburst. 

"I  beg  your  pardon,  Mr.  Thornton,"  he  said,  "but  I 
fear  you  did  not  have  enough  sleep  last  night." 

He  started  for  General  Waymouth's  room,  and  Harlan 
followed  him.  There  seemed  to  be  no  other  haven  for 
the  latter  just  then.  He  was  hung  between  the  political 
sky  and  earth.  He  had  no  hope  left  that  the  General 
could  prevail  over  the  conditions  that  h?.d  so  suddenly 
presented  themselves.  But  his  loyalty  was  not  shaken. 
Now  it  had  become  unreasoning  loyalty,  dogged  de 
termination  to  stick  to  his  choice;  and  as  he  looked  at 
Linton 's  back  preceding  him  along  the  corridor,  he  was 
more  firmly  determined  than  ever.  Suddenly  he  was 
glad  of  the  fact  that  this  young  man  was  on  the  other  side, 
and  he  did  not  stop  to  analyze  why  he  was  glad  it  was  so. 

197 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

General  Waymouth's  parlor  was  crowded  with  men. 
The  size  of  that  levee  astonished  the  two  new  arrivals. 
The  General  was  not  in  sight.  He  was  closeted  with 
some  one  in  the  bedroom.  Harlan  and  Linton  noted 
that  the  men  in  the  parlor  did  not  wear  the  demeanor  of 
ordinary  visitors  calling  to  pay  their  respects  to  a  "  has 
been."  Some  of  them  were  talking  eagerly  in  bunches, 
some  were  waiting — all  were  serious  and  anxious. 

General  Waymouth,  coming  to  his  bedroom  door  to 
usher  out  three  men  and  admit  others,  saw  his  young 
lieutenants.  He  called  them  to  him.  He  was  straighter. 
He  was  stern.  Fires  within  had  given  his  eyes  the  flash 
of  youth.  All  his  usual  gentle  pensiveness  was  gone. 

"My  boys,"  he  said,  earnestly,  "a  week  ago  I  didn't 
think  I  wanted  to  be  Governor  of  this  State  again.  But 
I  want  that  office  now  with  the  whole  strength  of  my 
soul.  The  devil  is  running  our  State  to-day  through 
his  agents.  I've  got  a  duty  to  perform.  I  haven't  time 
now  to  tell  you  what  I've  discovered  since  you  left  my 
room.  I  want  you  to — 

"  I  ask  your  pardon  for  interrupting,  General,"  said 
Linton,  manfully,  "but  I  want  to  be  as  square  with  you 
as  I  can.  Interests  that  belong  to  others  will  suffer  if  I 
continue  with  you— things  being  as  they  are.  I  make 
haste  to  speak  before  you  tell  me  any  more.  I  ask  to  be 
released." 

"As  a  soldier  I  might  question  a  resignation  on  the 
eve  of  battle,  but  as  a  politician  I  want  no  half-hearted- 
ness  in  my  ranks.  Good-day,  Mr.  Linton."  He  stood 
very  erect,  and  his  air  admitted  no  further  explanation. 
Linton  bowed,  and  went  out  of  the  room. 

"There  is  no  half-heartedness  here!"  cried  Harlan, 
passionately.  "  Is  there  anything  I  can  do,  General 
Waymouth?" 

"Go  and  bring  Arba  Spinney  to  this  room  at  once. 
Understand  the  situation  before  you  go :  I  have  already 

198 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

sent  men  for  him.  He  has  refused  to  come.  Tell  him 
this  is  his  last  opportunity  to  save  himself  from  such 
deep  disgrace  that  it  will  drive  him  from  his  State.  I 
wish  I  could  tell  you  to  take  him  by  the  collar  and  lug 
him  here.  I  venture  to  say  you  have  the  muscle,  young 
man.  But  minutes  are  valuable — bring  him." 

Harlan  hurried  away. 

Mr.  Spinney  was  not  in  evidence  in  the  parlor  of  his 
suite,  but  Harlan  heard  his  tremendous  voice  in  the 
bedroom — that  voice  could  not  be  softened  even  in  an 
exigency. 

Several  men  whom  Harlan  recognized  as  members 
of  the  State  Committee  were  seated  near  the  door;  and 
when  he  approached  to  knock,  one  of  them  informed  him 
that  Mr.  Spinney  was  too  busy  to  be  seen. 

"But  my  business  is  important." 

"What  sort  of  business  is  it?" 

"Is  Mr.  Spinney  afraid  of  visitors?"  demanded  the 
young  man.  His  mien  impressed  the  men.  They  knew 
that  he  was  Thelismer  Thornton's  grandson.  They 
conversed  among  themselves  in  whispers.  Without 
waiting,  and  before  they  could  stay  him,  he  flung  open 
the  door. 

Spinney  stopped  in  his  discourse  with  several  men,  and 
faced  about  apprehensively.  He,  too,  recognized  the 
young  man,  and  was  unable  to  decide  whether  to  class 
him  with  friends  or  foes. 

"  Mr.  Spinney,  I  have  been  sent  to  bring  you  with  me 
instantly.  Will  you  come?" 

"Where?" 

"  It's  a  matter  for  your  ear,  sir.     But  you  must  come." 

The  men  with  Spinney  promptly  counselled  him  to 
remain  where  he  was,  but  the  candidate  was  impressed 
by  the  young  man's  determined  appearance.  Harlan 
strode  to  him,  and  took  him  by  the  arm.  He  had  been 
used  to  the  command  of  men  since  boyhood.  "  I  have 

199 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

some  very  positive  instructions.  It  will  be  a  serious 
matter  for  you,  Mr.  Spinney,  if  you  don't  come — and 
you  can't  afford  to  take  the  advice  of  these  men  here." 

He  propelled  his  man  toward  the  door,  and  Mr. 
Spinney  went.  It  is  likely  that  he  concluded  that  no 
very  serious  damage  could  come  to  him  in  the  presence 
of  Thelismer  Thornton's  grandson.  But  when  they 
arrived  near  the  door  of  General  Waymouth's  parlor, 
Spinney  recognized  what  it  meant  and  resisted. 

"It's  a  trap!"  he  gasped.  "I  thought  your  grand 
father — 

The  State  Committeemen  were  following  along  the 
corridor,  growling  threats.  Now  they  understood  that 
this  was  practically  an  abduction.  They  hastened  up 
to  the  scene  of  the  struggle.  But  the  young  man  was 
not  deterred.  He  was  obeying  orders  without  question. 
With  him  it  was  not  a  matter  of  politics;  he  did  not  pause 
to  wonder  how  the  affair  would  be  looked  upon.  The 
man  to  whom  all  his  loyalty  had  gone  out  had  com 
manded;  he  was  obeying.  But  the  others  were  resolute 
too.  They  were  about  to  interfere.  At  that  moment 
Thelismer  Thornton  appeared  in  the  corridor. 

"  Let  the  boy  alone,"  he  commanded,  thrusting  himself 
among  them. 

The  diversion  gave  Harlan  his  opportunity.  Clutch 
ing  Spinney  with  one  hand,  he  threw  open  the  door  and 
pushed  him  in,  followed  him,  and  closed  the  door.  He 
locked  it,  and  stood  with  his  back  against  it. 

In  that  moment  he  did  not  reflect  that  in  obeying 
General  Waymouth  so  implicitly  he  might  be  playing 
traitor  to  his  own  flesh  and  blood.  But  the  Duke,  in  his 
cynicism,  had  never  attracted  his  grandson's  political 
loyalty.  That  had  seemed  a  matter  apart  from  the 
family  ties  between  them.  His  grandfather  had  set 
him  on  the  trail  of  decency  in  politics,  and  had  given 
him  a  leader  to  follow. 

200 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

The  frankness  with  which  his  grandfather  had  ex 
posed  the  code  by  which  he  and  his  ilk  operated  in 
politics,  making  tricks,  subterfuge,  and  downright  dis 
honesty  an  integral  part  of  the  game  and  entitled  to 
absolution,  had  divorced  Harlan's  straightforward  sym 
pathies  when  the  question  came  to  issue  between  his  own 
relative,  complacently  unscrupulous,  and  General  Way- 
mouth,  heroically  casting  off  bonds  of  friendship  and 
political  affiliations,  and  standing  for  what  was  obviously 
the  right.  It  was  chivalrous.  It  appealed  to  the  youth 
in  Harlan.  His  manhandling  of  the  amazed  Spinney 
was  an  unheard-of  event  among  gentlemen  at  a  political 
convention,  but  there  was  more  than  impulse  behind  it. 
Harlan  Thornton  was  a  woodsman.  Social  conventions 
make  the  muscles  subservient,  but  in  the  more  primitive 
conditions  the  musc'es  leap  ahead  of  the  mind. 

Therefore,  he  came  with  Mr.  Spinney  and  tossed  him 
into  the  presence  of  the  chief,  who  had  sent  for  him. 

Then  he  set  his  broad  shoulders  against  the  door,  for 
fists  had  begun  to  hammer  at  it. 

It  was  evident  at  once  that  Spinney  recognized  the 
nature  of  the  conference  that  had  assembled  in  General 
Waymouth's  room,  and  knew  what  the  personnel  of  the 
group  signified. 

He  looked  around  him  and  started  toward  the  door. 

"I've  got  witnesses  to  that  assault,  and  you're  going 
to  suffer  for  it,"  he  blustered.  Harlan  did  not  give  way. 

"  You  can't  leave  here  yet,  Mr.  Spinney — not  until 
General  Waymouth  finishes  his  business  with  you." 

The  General  had  viewed  Mr.  Spinney's  headlong  arrival 
with  astonishment.  He  stepped  forward  to  the  centre 
of  the  room.  There  was  a  note  in  his  voice  that  quelled 
the  man  as  much  as  had  Harlan's  resolute  demeanor  at 
the  door. 

"  Spinney,  it  will  be  better  for  you  if  you  listen." 

The  candidate  turned  to  face  him,  apprehensive  and 

201 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

defiant  at  the  same  time.  The  panels  of  the  door  against 
which  Harlan  leaned  were  jarred  by  beating  fists.  Har- 
lan  heard  the  voice  of  his  grandfather  outside,  calling 
to  him  impatiently.  A  moment  more,  and  Chairman 
Presson  added  a  more  wrathful  admonition  to  open. 

"  Mr.  Thornton,  will  you  kindly  inform  those  people 
at  the  door  that  this  is  my  room,  and  that  I  command 
them  to  withdraw?"  directed  General  Waymouth. 

Harlan  flung  the  door  open  and  filled  the  space  with 
the  bulk  of  his  body.  Both  parties  stood  revealed  to 
each  other,  the  young  man  dividing  them,  and  disdaining 
intrenchments. 

"What  kind  of  a  crazy-headed,  lumber-jack  perform 
ance  are  you  perpetrating  here?"  demanded  the  elder 
Thornton.  "  You're  not  handling  Canucks  to-day,  you 
young  hyena!" 

"This  is  a  scandal — a  disgrace  to  this  convention!" 
thundered  Presson.  He  started  to  come  in,  but  Harlan 
barred  the  doorway  with  body  and  arms. 

"  Do  you  want  any  of  these  gentlemen  inside,  Gen 
eral?"  he  asked. 

"  Neither  Mr.  Presson,  nor  Mr.  Thornton,  nor  any 
of  the  rest,"  declared  Waymouth.  "And  I  want  that 
disturbance  at  my  door  stopped." 

"You  hear  that!"  cried  the  defender  of  the  pass. 
"  Now,  Mr.  Presson,  if  you  intend  to  disgrace  this  con 
vention  by  a  riot,  it's  up  to  you  to  start  it."  And  then 
the  choler  and  the  hot  blood  of  his  youth  spoke.  He  did 
not  pick  his  words.  His  opinion  of  them  was  seething 
within  him.  He  talked  as  he  would  talk  to  a  lumber- 
crew.  "  I'm  keeping  this  door,  and  I'm  man  enough 
for  all  the  pot-bellied  politicians  you  can  crowd  into  this 
corridor.  And  if  there's  any  more  hammering  here,  I'll 
step  out  and  show  you." 

He  slammed  the  door,  locked  it,  and  set  his  shoulders 
against  the  panels. 

202 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

"  Luke,  keep  away,"  counselled  Thelismer.  "The  boy 
is  just  plain  lumber-jack  at  the  present  moment,  and 
he's  a  hard  man  in  a  scrap.  We  can't  afford  to  have  a 
scene." 

"They're  going  to  turn  wrongside-out  that  wad  of 
cotton  batting  with  two  ounces  of  brains  wrapped  in 
it!  '  raved  the  State  chairman.  But  the  Duke  pulled 
the  politician  away,  whispering  in  his  ear. 

Spinney  faced  the  General,  blinking,  doubtful,  sullen. 

The  old  soldier  knew  how  to  attack.  He  flung  his 
accusation  with  fierce  directness.  "  Spinney,  you  have 
sold  out.  You're  a  traitor.  And  you're  a  thief  as  well, 
for  you've  sold  what  didn't  belong  to  you.  You  solicited 
honest  men,  in  the  name  of  reform,  to  put  their  cause 
into  your  hands.  It  was  a  trust.  You've  sold  it." 

"  I'll  prosecute  you  for  slander!"  roared  the  candidate. 
He  hoped  his  defiance  would  be  heard  by  those  out 
side. 

"  You  may  do  so,  but  I'll  give  you  here  and  now  the 
facts  that  you'll  go  up  against.  That's  how  sure  I  am 
of  my  ground!" 

He  shook  papers  at  the  man. 

"  Last  night,  or  rather  this  morning  at  one  o'clock,  to 
be  exact,  you  met  Luke  Presson  and  members  of  the 
State  Committee,  and  for  two  thousand  dollars,  paid  to 
you  in  one-hundred-dollar  bills,  you  agreed  to  pull  out. 
The  secret  was  to  be  kept  until  it  should  be  time  for  the 
nominating  speeches  to  be  made  on  the  floor  of  the  con 
vention  to-day.  I  have  here  affidavits  signed  by  re 
sponsible  parties  who  heard  the  entire  transaction." 
It  was  accusation  formal,  couched  in  cold  phrases,  with 
out  passion. 

Spinney  started.  The  perspiration  began  to  stream 
down  his  face.  But  in  spite  of  the  staggering  blow  the 
fight  was  not  out  of  him.  He  thought  quickly,  reassur 
ing  himself  by  the  recollection  that  his  bedroom  door 

203 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

had  been  locked,  and  men  were  on  guard  in  his  parlor. 
There  could  have  been  no  eavesdroppers.  This  must  be 
a  bluff. 

"That's  a  damnation  lie!"  he  shouted. 

"Don't  you  bellow  at  me,  sir!  I'm  not  trying  to  ex 
tort  any  confession.  But  you're  wasting  time,  denying. 
I'm  sure  of  my  ground,  I  repeat.  That's  why  I'm  talk 
ing  now.  I'm  an  old  man,  and  I  was  in  politics  in  this 
State  before  you  were  born.  And  there  were  tricks  and 
tricksters  in  the  old  days.  And  I  knew  them.  I  played 
one  of  those  tricks  on  you,  sir,  last  night.  It's  the  last 
one  I  hope  I  shall  ever  play,  for  tricks  are  to  be  taken  out 
of  the  politics  of  this  State.  The  god  of  good  chance 
lodged  you  in  'Traitor's  Room,'  last  night,  Mr.  Spinney." 

The  man  stared  at  him,  frightened,  not  understanding. 

"  There's  a  false  door  and  a  slide  in  the  wall  of  that  bed 
room,  Spinney,  and  the  old  politician  who  put  it  there 
years  ago  passed  the  knowledge  on  to  me.  I'm  willing 
every  one  should  know  it  now.  When  you  go  back  I  will 
have  it  shown  to  you.  It  will  convince  you  that  these 
affidavits  I  hold  in  my  hand  are  not  guess-work.  These 
men  in  this  room  now — for  your  own  men  brought  me 
word  that  you  were  hiding  from  them — made  those 
affidavits.  Look  at  them,  and  deny — deny  once  more, 
Spinney!" 

But  the  candidate  had  no  voice  now.  He  glanced 
furtively  from  face  to  face. 

"Spinney,"  one  declared,  bitterly,  "we've  got  you 
dead  to  rights.  There  ain't  any  use  in  squirming.  We 
suspected  you  when  you  hid  away  from  us,  and  General 
Waymouth  put  us  in  the  way  of  finding  out  just  who  was 
with  you.  You  might  as  well  give  in." 

The  General  did  not  wait  for  Spinney  to  speak.  He 
was  in  no  mood  then  for  listening.  He  was  in  command. 
He  was  issuing  orders.  The  battle  was  on,  and  he  was 
in  the  saddle. 

204 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

''  I  propose  to  have  your  name  go  before  the  conven 
tion,  Spinney.  You  must  walk  out  of  this  room  and  deny 
the  rumors  that  are  afloat.  I  propose  to  have  two  of 
these  men  go  with  you  and  stay  with  you.  And  if  you 
deny  half-heartedly,  or  if  you  attempt  any  more  sneak 
tricks,  or  if  your  name  is  not  put  into  nomination  to-day, 
I'll  stand  out  and  declare  what  is  in  these  affidavits.  If 
you  wrant  to  save  yourself  and  the  men  who  bribed  you, 
obey  my  orders." 

"  I  don't  understand  why  you  want  me  to  go  ahead 
now,"  Spinney  ventured  to  protest. 

"  And  I  don't  propose  to  take  you  into  my  confidence 
enough,  sir,  to  inform  you.  I  simply  instruct  you  to  do 
as  I  say,  and  if  you  obey,  I  and  these  men  here  will  do 
all  we  can  to  cover  up  this  nasty  mess  in  our  party.  It's 
in  your  hands  whether  you  go  to  jail  or  not." 

The  General  signalled  to  Harlan,  and  the  young  man 
opened  the  door.  Spinney  went  out  with  his  watchful 
guardians. 

"  Now  you  ought  to  be  able  to  hold  your  men  together 
until  we  need  them,  gentlemen,"  said  the  General,  ad 
dressing  those  who  remained.  "  But  you'd  better  get 
out  among  them  and  see  that  they  stay  in  line.  Defend 
Spinney!  God  knows,  the  words  will  stick  in  your 
throats,  but  show  a  bold  front  to  the  other  side.  Gather 
in  your  stragglers." 

They  filedfcut,  plain  and  stolid  individuals  from  the 
rural  sections. 

Harlan  was  left  alone  with  the  General. 

"  There  go  the  kind  that  the  demagogues  always  catch, 
Mr.  Thornton.  The  demagogues  understand  human 
nature.  They  prey  on  the  radicals  who  will  follow  the 
man  who  promises — sets  class  against  class  and  eternally 
promises !  Promises  the  jealous  ascetics  to  deprive  other 
men  of  the  indulgences  they  seem  to  enjoy — promises  to 
correct  things  for  the  great  majority  which  dimly  under- 

205 


stands  that  things  are  out  of  joint  in  their  little  affairs, 
and  as  dimly  hope  that  laws  and  rulers  can  correct  those 
things  and  make  the  income  cover  the  grocery  bills. 
Spinney  had  them  by  the  ears,  that  he  did!  But  the 
knave  was  shrewd  enough  to  understand  that  the 
machine  would  probably  whip  him  in  convention.  They 
used  my  name  to  scare  him  into  selling  out— threatened 
to  stampede  the  convention  for  me.  That's  why  I'm  so 
angry." 

"  Let  me  ask  you  something,  General.  It  was  Spinney, 
was  it,  Spinney  and  the  kind  I've  seen  training  with  him 
in  this  thing,  that  stirred  up  the  opposition  in  this  State 
— the  kind  of  opposition  we  found  at  our  Fort  Canibas 
caucus?" 

"  From  all  reports,  yes.  I  know  some  of  the  agents 
that  have  been  working  in  the  State.  The  men  behind 
have  hidden  themselves  pretty  well,  and  I'm  not  exactly 
certain  where  their  money  is  coming  from.  But  I  sup 
pose  the  liquor  interests  are  putting  in  considerable,  as 
usual." 

"The  liquor  interests!     Backing  reformers?" 

The  General  smiled. 

"  Remember  that  I've  had  better  chances  to  see  the 
inside  than  you,  young  man.  I've  watched  it  operate 
from  the  start.  In  case  of  doubt  you'll  find  the  liquor 
interests  on  both  sides.  It's  an  evil  that  prohibition 
opens  the  door  to.  The  saloons  are  to  be  tolerated  and 
protected,  or  they  are  to  be  persecuted— the  programme 
depends  on  the  men  who  get  control.  If  they  are  to  be 
tolerated,  the  wholesale  liquor  men  have  to  stand  in 
right,  so  that  they  may  have  the  privilege  of  doing  busi 
ness  with  the  retailers.  If  the  saloons  are  to  be  closed, 
the  liquor  men  want  to  stand  in  right,  so  that  they  can 
do  business  direct  with  the  consumer;  and  then  there 
are  the  increased  sales  through  the  legalized  city  and 
town  agencies  when  the  saloons  are  closed — the  liquor 

206 


THE    ODD    TRICK 

men  need  that  business.  The  liquor  is  bound  to  come 
in  anyway,  whichever  faction  is  in  control.  So  the  big 
rumsellers  cater  to  both  sides." 

"  Isn't  there  any  decency  anywhere,  in  any  man, 
General  Waymouth,  when  he  gets  mixed  into  such 
things?" 

"Don't  lose  your  faith  that  way,  my  boy!  You  see, 
I'm  even  playing  a  few  political  tricks  myself.  Your 
grandfather  is  more  than  half  right — we  have  to  play  the 
game!  But  I'm  trying  a  last  experiment  with  human 
nature  before  I  die.  I  haven't  the  things  to  lose  that  a 
young  man  has.  I  am  forcing  myself  on  my  party — 
using  some  means  that  disgust  me,  but  I  have  to  do  so  in 
order  to  prevail.  I  want  to  be  Governor  of  this  State 
again,  and  I  want  to  be  Governor  with  more  powers 
than  I  had  before.  You  and  I  both  know  what  the  party 
managers  want.  I'd  like  to  find  out  if  the  people  are 
willing  to  be  governed  that  way,  after  they've  learned 
there's  a  better  system.  I  want  to  find  out  if  every  man 
in  this  State  is  willing  to  pay  his  own  just  share  of  taxes, 
if  the  people  will  wake  up  and  stand  behind  a  man  who 
shows  them  how  to  keep  from  private  greed  what  be 
longs  to  the  people.  And  most  of  all,  young  man,  this 
State  is  in  a  condition  of  civil  war  over  this  infernal 
liquor  question.  The  radicals  are  away  off  at  one  side, 
and  the  liberals  as  far  away  from  them  as  they  can  get, 
and  both  sides  plastering  each  other  with  mud.  There's 
no  common  ground  for  a  decent  and  honest  man  to  stand 
on  between ;  that  is,  he's  too  much  disgusted  with 
both  sides  to  join  either.  I  want  to  see  whether  there's 
good  sense  enough  in  this  State  to  take  the  thing  out  of 
the  hands  of  the  fanatics  so  that  we  can  get  results  that 
decent  men  can  subscribe  to — results  instead  of  the  ruin 
and  rottenness  we're  in  now." 

He  stopped  suddenly  with  a  word  of  apology. 

"You  mustn't  think  I'm  inflicting  a  rehearsal  of  my 

207 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

inauguration  speech  on  you,  Mr.  Thornton.  I  talked 
more  than  I  intended.  But  my  feelings  have  been  deeply 
stirred  this  morning." 

"It's  wicked  business,  General  Waymouth!  I  don't 
understand  how  you've  kept  so  calm  through  it.  But, 
thank  God,  you  can  show  'em  all  up  now,  as  they  deserve 
to  be  shown  to  the  people  of  this  State.  I  can  hardly 
wait  for  that  convention  to  open!" 

The  General  put  his  papers  into  his  breast-pocket  and 
buttoned  his  close  frock-coat.  He  gazed  on  the  young 
man's  excitement  indulgently. 

"  My  boy,  you  have  yet  to  learn,  I  see,  that  what  would 
make  a  good  scene  in  a  theatre  would  be  a  mighty  bad 
move  in  politics.  This,  to-day,  is  a  convention  that  a 
good  many  thousands  of  voters  are  waiting  to  hear  from. 
If  they  should  hear  the  whole  truth,  I'm  thinking  that 
the  Democratic  party  would  win  at  the  polls.  So,  you 
see,  I  must  continue  to  be  a  politician.  We'll  be  going 
along  to  the  hall,  now,  you  and  I.  It's  near  the  hour. 
I  want  to  be  the  next  Governor  of  this  State  "  (he  smiled 
wistfully),  "so  you  and  I  will  go  out  and  hunt  for 
enough  honest  men  to  make  me  Governor." 

The  hotel  was  pretty  well  deserted  as  they  walked 
down  the  stairs  and  through  the  lobby. 

"  Ours  doesn't  seem  to  be  the  largest  parade  of  the  day, 
Mr.  Thornton,"  said  the  veteran  mildly,  when  they  were 
on  the  street,  "but  we'll  see — we'll  see!" 


CHAPTER  XVIII 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

IKE  a  beacon  marking  shoals,  Thelismer 
Thornton  stood  at  the  head  of  the  broad 
granite  steps  that  led  up  to  the  conven 
tion  hall.  An  unlighted  cigar  was  set  hard 
between  his  teeth.  Men  nocked  past  him 
with  obsequious  greetings,  but  he  merely 
grunted  replies.  He  was  watching  for  some  one.  He 
swore  under  his  breath  when  he  saw  his  man.  General 
Waymouth  and  Harlan  came  up  the  steps  together.  He 
swung  between  them,  and  went  along  into  the  hall. 

From  open  doors  and  windows  band-music  blared, 
welded  with  the  roar  of  two  thousand  voices,  each  man 
shouting  his  conversation  to  be  heard  above  his  neigh 
bors.  It  still  lacked  ten  minutes  of  the  hour  set  for  the 
opening  of  the  convention. 

Under  the  cover  of  the  uproar,  as  they  walked  along, 
the  Duke  delivered  some  very  vigorous  opinions  to  his 
grandson,  expressing  himself  as  to  the  latter 's  state  of 
intellect,  judgment,  and  general  fitness  to  be  allowed 
loose  among  men. 

Harlan  did  not  retort.  He  took  his  cue  from  the 
General,  who  smiled  and  listened. 

"I'll  tell  you  what  I  ought  to  do  with  you,  boy!  I 
ought  to  skin  you.  I'd  find  a  ready  sale  for  the  hide. 
They  could  use  it  to  make  bindings  for  New  Testaments. 
Your're  too  d— n — d  righteous, altogether !  I've  been  easy 
and  patient  with  you,  but  I  don't  propose  to  stand  at 

209 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

one  side  now,  and  see  you  ruin  yourself  politically.  Why 
are  you  letting  the  boy  do  it,  Varden?"  he  demanded, 
turning  on  the  General.  "You're  old  enough  to  know 
better.  He's  no  help  to  you  now.  I  supposed  I  had  a 
grandson  until  you  got  hold  of  him!" 

"You've  still  got  a  grandson,  but  you  haven't  got  a 
political  tool  to  use  in  prying  open  a  new  governorship 
deal  every  fifteen  minutes,"  declared  the  young  man. 
"  You  took  me  to  General  Waymouth,  you  pledged  me  to 
him — I  pledged  myself  to  him.  I  don't  propose  to  dis 
cuss  this  matter  any  further.  I'm  my  own  man  when 
it  comes  to  politics!" 

"Thelismer,  I  wouldn't  say  any  more  just  now,"  sug 
gested  the  General.  "You  are  angry,  and  I've  told  you 
many  times  in  past  years  that  your  judgment  is  not  good 
when  you  are  angry.  But  this  is  no  place  for  talking 
these  matters!" 

The  curious  had  already  begun  to  throng  about  them. 
General  Waymouth  was  a  marked  figure  in  a  gathering. 
It  had  not  become  a  matter  of  general  knowledge  that  he 
was  attending  the  convention.  He  had  not  appeared 
frequently  in  public  since  his  retirement,  and  men  were 
glad  to  see  him.  The  early  buzz  that  greeted  his  first 
appearance  in  the  hall  grew  louder  and  louder,  and 
swelled  into  an  uproar  as  delegates  turned  in  larger 
numbers  and  recognized  him. 

The  vast  body  of  the  auditorium  was  crowded  with 
men.  Posts  supporting  huge  placards  indicated  the 
division  of  delegates  into  counties.  The  General's  own 
county  was  nearest  the  door  by  which  he  had  entered. 
At  a  call  from  some  one  these  delegates  climbed  upon 
their  settees.  They  gave  three  cheers  for  him.  It  was 
a  spontaneous  tribute  to  the  one  great  man  of  the  State 
— their  county's  favorite  son. 

The  word  passed  rapidly.  Other  counties  came  to 
their  feet.  The  band  was  playing,  the  early  enthusiasm 

210 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

of  the  day  was  fresh,  men  had  not  had  opportunity  to 
exercise  their  voices  till  then,  and  as  the  General  passed 
down  the  side  aisle  of  the  hall  he  was  cheered  by  every 
delegation.  Harlan  followed  him  closely,  and  the  Duke 
was  at  their  heels.  Every  man  in  the  hall  saw  the  little 
group.  It  seemed  eminently  fit  that  Thelismer  Thornton 
should  escort  General  Waymouth.  But  the  Duke  did 
not  realize  that  the  General  was  shrewdly  using  that 
opportunity  of  displaying  Thornton,  the  elder,  in  his 
retinue.  The  accident  fitted  with  some  plans  of  his 
own. 

Spurred  by  the  excitement  of  that  tumultuous  mo 
ment,  Harlan  could  not  restrain  a  bit  of  a  boast. 

"How  do  you  like  the  sound  of  that,  grandfather?" 
he  flung  over  his  shoulder. 

"There's  no  politics  in  that,  you  young  fool.  A 
hoorah  isn't  a  nomination." 

But  he  could  not  hide  from  himself  the  plain  fact  that 
Varden  Waymouth  was  a  tremendously  strong  figure 
in  State  affairs. 

There  was  sincerity  behind  that  outburst.  Eyes  glis 
tened.  Faces  glowed  with  admiration  and  respect. 
The  Duke  wondered  bitterly  how  much  of  that  extraor 
dinary  tribute  was  inspired  by  the  publicity  work  for 
which  the  State  Committee  had  spent  its  good  money. 

The  General  led  the  way  in  at  the  side  door  that  ad 
mitted  to  the  stage.  He  was  on  familiar  ground.  Be 
hind  the  stage  there  were  several  anterooms.  He  ap 
propriated  an  empty  one,  hanging  his  hat  on  a  hook. 

"  Not  an  elaborate  lay-out  for  a  candidate,  Thelis 
mer,"  he  remarked,  pleasantly,  "but  headquarters  to 
day  is  where  we  hang  up  our  hat." 

"  Vard,  you  don't  mean  to  tell  me — seriously,  at  this 
hour — that  you  mean  to  be  a  candidate?"  Thornton 
had  put  aside  his  anger.  That  had  been  bitter  and  quick 
ire,  because  his  grandson  had  seemed  so  blind  to  his  own 

15  211 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

personal  interests.  There  was  solicitude  now  in  the  old 
man's  air. 

"  I  got  you  into  this  myself,"  he  went  on.  "  I  coaxed 
you  in,  for  the  situation  was  right  and  ripe.  You  kicked 
it  over  yourself.  I  haven't  any  compunctions,  Yard.  I 
stayed  with  you  just  as  long  as  I  could  stay.  But  I'll  be 
dod-jimmed  if  I'll  shove  a  Governor  onto  my  party  that's 
a  hybrid  of  Socialist  and  angel.  Now  you  can't  swing 
this  thing.  Everett's  got  it  buttoned.  I  tell  you  he 
has!  You're  too  big  a  man,  to-day,  to  get  before  that 
convention  and  be  thrown  down.  I've  got  a  better  line 
on  the  situation  than  you  have.  Yard,  let's  not  have 
this  come  up  between  us  at  our  time  of  life.  It's  bad- 
it's  bad!" 

"It  is  bad,"  returned  the  General,  quietly;  "but  not 
for  me!  And  it's  too  late  to  stop.  I'm  going  through 
with  it,  Thelismer." 

There  was  dignity — a  finality  of  decision — that  checked 
further  argument.  Thornton  shifted  gaze  from  Way- 
mouth  to  his  grandson,  started  to  say  more,  snapped  his 
jaws  shut,  and  walked  away. 

The  door  of  the  anteroom  afforded  a  view  across  the 
stage.  The  hour  had  arrived.  The  secretary  of  the 
State  Committee  appeared  from  the  wings  and  waited 
until  the  delegates  were  in  their  seats  and  quiet.  He 
read  the  call,  and  then  the  temporary  organization  was 
promptly  effected,  the  tagged  delegates  popping  up 
here  and  there  and  making  the  motions  that  had  been 
entrusted  to  them. 

A  clergyman  invoked  Divine  blessing,  praying  ful- 
somely  and  long,  beseeching  that  the  delegates  would  be 
guided  by  the  higher  will  in  their  deliberations. 

"  It's  the  only  prayer  I  ever  find  amusing — God  par 
don  me!"  whispered  the  General  at  Harlan's  side,  watch 
ing  the  preliminaries.  "To  call  a  State  convention,  as 
the  machine  runs  it,  a  deliberative  body  is  a  sad  jest  of 

212 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

some  magnitude.  The  managers  intend  to  hold  the 
real  convention  the  night  before  in  the  State  Committee's 
headquarters  at  the  hotel.  But  to-day  I  hope  that 
prayer  proves  prophetic." 

He  studied  the  faces  on  the  platform.  The  United 
States  Senator,  smug  and  now  satisfied  that  he  had 
chosen  aright  for  his  personal  interests,  sat  in  the  chair 
man's  central  seat,  and  studied  his  people  from  under 
eyelids  half  lowered  while  the  parson  prayed. 

After  the  prayer,  the  routine  proceeded  hurriedly. 
For  five  minutes  the  convention  seemed  to  be  in  a  state 
of  riot.  Men  were  bellowing  and  yelping,  and  standing 
on  settees.  The  counties  were  holding  simultaneous 
caucuses  for  the  purpose  of  selecting,  each  its  vice- 
president  of  convention,  its  State  committeeman,  and 
member  of  the  Committee  on  Resolutions — the  resolu 
tions  then  reposing  in  the  breast-pocket  of  the  Hon.  Luke 
Presson. 

The  secretaries  were  announced,  the  temporary  or 
ganization  was  made  permanent,  and,  advancing  against 
a  blast  of  band-music  and  a  salvo  of  applause,  the  Sena 
tor-chairman  began  his  address. 

"  Now,"  remarked  General  Waymouth,  grimly,  "  I  am 
ready  to  open  headquarters  in  earnest.  My  boy,  in  that 
anteroom  across  the  stage  you'll  find  your  grandfather 
and  Mr.  Presson,  and  certain  members  of  the  State 
Committee.  David  Everett  will  be  there,  too.  Inform 
them  I  send  my  urgent  request  that  they  meet,  at  once, 
the  Hon.  Arba  Spinney  and  a  delegation  in  my  room  here. 
I  think  that  combination  will  suggest  to  guilty  con 
sciences  that  they'd  better  hurry.  If  they  show  any 
signs  of  hesitating,  you  may  intimate  as  much  to  them." 

The  plain  and  stolid  men  came  in  just  then.  They 
brought  Mr.  Spinney  through  the  side  door.  The  un 
happy  conspirator,  jostled  by  his  body-guard,  was  near 
collapse.  He  was  now  traitor  to  both  sides.  Circum- 

213 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

stances  hemmed  him  in.  But  more  than  he  feared  the 
recriminations  of  Luke  Presson  and  his  associates,  he 
feared  the  papers  in  the  breast-pocket  of  Varden  Way- 
mouth. 

Harlan  went  on  his  errand,  crossing  the  stage  behind 
a  backdrop.  Senator  Pownal  had  got  well  under  way, 
and  was  setting  forth  the  sturdy  principles  of  the  Re 
publican  party  with  all  the  power  of  his  lungs. 

Harlan  did  not  knock  at  the  anteroom  door;  he 
walked  in,  and  for  a  moment  he  thought  that  the  en 
raged  chairman  was  about  to  leap  at  his  throat. 

"Spinney,  eh?"  he  blazed  at  the  young  man's  first 
word.  "Explain  to  me,  Mr.  Thornton,  what  is  meant 
by  your  assault  on  a  decent  and  honest  citizen?  What 
do  you  mean  by  teaming  him  from  the  hotel  to  this 
convention  hall  with  a  body-guard  to  insult  men  who 
have  business  with  him?" 

The  question  was  confession  that  the  chairman  had 
been  unable  to  get  at  the  political  property  he  had  paid 
dearly  for.  It  indicated  that  he  suspected  but  did  not 
realize  fully  how  deeply  Spinney  was  in  the  toils. 

"Explain!"  shouted  Presson,  standing  on  tiptoe  to 
thrust  features  convulsed  with  rage  into  the  young  man's 
face. 

"  General  Waymouth  is  waiting  to  explain,  sir.  He's 
across  the  stage,  there!  And  Mr.  Spinney  is  with  him. 
I'd  advise  you  to  hurry." 

"  I  don't  need  any  of  your  advice!  If  you've  got  him 
on  exhibition  at  last  where  the  public  can  be  admitted, 
I  can't  get  there  any  too  quick." 

He  rushed  out,  charging  like  a  bull,  and  the  others 
followed. 

The  State  committeeman  who  closed  file  with  Harlan 
did  not  appreciate  the  gravity  of  the  situation. 

"  You  seem  to  be  introducing  new  features  into  a 
State  Convention  to-day,  cap'n,"  he  observed,  sarcas- 

214 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

tically.     "The  way  you're  handling  Brother  Spinney  is 
like  the  song  about 

"  '  Old  Jucl  Cole,  who  went  by  freight 
To  Xewry  Corner  in  this   State; 
Packed  him  in  a  crate  to  get  him  there, 
With  a  two-cent  stamp  to  pay  his  fare.'" 

He  added,  "  Spinney  is  light  enough  to  travel  on  that 
tariff,  but  you're  going  to  find  he's  got  friends  that  are 
heavier." 

Young  Thornton  waited  till  all  had  entered  the  ante 
room,  and  again  took  his  post  as  guard  on  the  inside  of 
the  door. 

General  Waymouth  checked  Presson  at  the  first  yelp 
of  the  outburst  with  which  he  had  stormed  into  the 
loom.  Probably  there  was  not  another  man  in  the 
State  who  could  have  prevailed  by  sheer  force  of  dignity 
and  carriage  in  that  moment  when  the  passions  of  his 
opponents  were  so  white-hot.  But  he  was,  in  intellect, 
birth,  breeding,  and  position,  above  them  all,  and  they 
knew  it.  There,  boxed  in  that  little  room,  they  faced 
him,  and  anger,  rancor,  spite,  itch  for  revenge  gave 
way  before  his  stern,  cold,  inexorable  determination  to 
prevail  in  the  name  of  the  right. 

"  Gentlemen,  I  haven't  called  you  here  for  the  pur 
pose  of  arguing  or  wrangling.  You'll  waste  time  by 
trying  to  do  either.  You  are  here  to  listen  to  what  must 
be  done.  You  represent  the  wrarring  factions.  There 
arc  enough  of  us  to  straighten  the  matter  out.  There 
are  not  so  many  that  the  secret  of  this  shameful  mess 
cannot  be  kept,  and  our  party  saved  at  the  polls." 

He  paused  to  draw  the  fateful  documents  from  his 
pocket. 

In  the  hush  of  the  little  room  they  heard  Senator 
Pownal  declaiming:  "And  it  is  upon  these  firm  prin 
ciples,  bedrock  of  inalienable  rights  guaranteed  to  the 

215 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

people,  upon  the  broad  issues  of  reform,  inculcation  of 
temperance,  and  the  virtues  of  civic  life,  that  the  Re 
publican  party  is  founded." 

Harlan,  at  the  door,  younger  than  the  rest,  found  a 
suggestion  of  humor  in  what  the  orator  was  saying 
compared  with  what  the  party  managers  had  met  to 
hear.  But  there  were  no  smiles  on  the  faces  of  the  group. 
The  demeanor  of  the  stricken  Spinney,  anger  fairly  dis 
tilling  in  his  sweat-drops,  hinted  the  truth  to  Presson. 
Thelismer  Thornton  tried  to  get  near  Spinney,  under 
standing  it  all  even  better  than  the  State  chairman,  but 
the  plain  and  stolid  men  flanked  their  captive  with 
determination. 

"  I  have  here  five  affidavits  from  eye-witnesses,  swear 
ing  that  Arba  Spinney  was  bribed  to  sell  out  his  faction 
at  the  last  moment  to-day,  leaving  only  David  Everett 
in  the  field.  I  have  no  time  to  waste  in  giving  the  de 
tails  of  that  transaction  to  men  who  know  them  just  as 
well  as  I  do.  And  I  want  no  interruption,  sir!"  He 
brandished  the  papers  under  the  nose  of  Presson,  who 
attempted  to  speak.  "  I  do  not  propose  to  have  my 
intelligence  insulted  by  denials  from  you  or  any  one 
else.  If  you  don't  believe  I  have  full  proof  of  what  I 
charge,  you  walk  out  of  that  door  and  put  the  matter 
to  the  test!  And  I  hasten  to  assure  you,  sir,  that  you'll 
be  eternally  disgraced!" 

He  waited  a  moment,  because  a  roar  of  applause  that 
greeted  one  of  Senator  Pownal's  utterances  resounded 
even  in  the  remote  anteroom. 

"  It  all  means,  gentlemen,  that  I'm  to  be  the  nominee 
of  this  convention  to-day.  It's  time  for  a  clean-up, 
and  I'm  going  to  start  one.  The  men  who  are  running 
our  party  are  not  fit  to  be  in  charge  of  it.  The  voters 
deserve  a  better  show.  I've  called  you  here  to  give 
you  an  opportunity  to  save  yourselves,  personally.  I'm 
willing  to  submit  to  a  little  by-play  for  that  purpose. 

216 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

You  are  to  allow  Spinney's  name  to  go  before  the  con 
vention,  according  to  the  regular  programme.  That's 
to  divert  the  attention  of  the  convention  and  the  State- 
at-large  from  what  otherwise  would  seem  a  split  in  the 
recognized  management  of  the  party.  Spinney  has  been 
only  a  rank  outsider,  politically  considered.  We  have 
to  consider  the  campaign,  gentlemen,  and  the  material 
we  may  furnish  our  friends,  the  enemy.  Then,  you 
gentlemen  of  the  State  Committee,  each  in  his  county 
delegation,  are  to  start  a  demonstration  in  my  behalf. 
This  is  no  time  for  me  to  be  mock-modest.  On  the  heels 
of  that  demonstration  Everett's  name  is  to  be  with 
drawn  with  the  explanation  that  such  an  apparently 
spontaneous  demand  from  the  voters  should  be  recog 
nized.  Mr.  Everett  is  to  declare  that  under  the  circum 
stances  he  does  not  wish  to  stand  in  the  way  of  popular 
choice,  and  he  is  to  announce  that  much  and  present 
me  to  the  convention.  I  assure  you,  Mr.  Everett,  that 
I  ask  this  last  with  no  intent  of  wounding  your  feelings 
or  indulging  in  cheap  triumph — it  is  necessary  in  order 
that  the  mouths  of  political  gossips  may  be  shut." 

A  rather  stupid  silence  followed  that  declaration  of 
programme.  The  voice  of  the  Senator  rose  and  fell  without. 

The  General  met  their  staring  eyes  calmly.  "  It  may 
be  a  rather  surprising  development  of  the  convention," 
he  said.  "  But  as  soon  as  the  surprise  is  over  it  will 
commend  itself  as  a  perfectly  natural  and  graceful  con 
cession  to  public  opinion — as  public  opinion  can  be  set 
in  motion  by  the  members  of  the  State  Committee  on 
the  floor  of  the  convention.  In  fact,  the  plan  com 
mended  itself  to  my  friend  Thelismer,  here,  and  Chair 
man  Presson  some  weeks  ago." 

The  State  chairman  was  stirred  as  though  galvan- 
ically  by  that  statement.  The  bitter  memory  of  how  he 
had  groomed  the  dark  horse  that  was  now  kicking  his 
master's  political  brains  out  rose  in  him. 

217 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"By  the  everlasting  gods,"  he  shouted,  "I'll  go  down 
fighting!  If  the  house  has  got  to  come  down,  I'll  go 
down  with  it." 

"  Samson  had  two  arms.  I  have  only  one,"  returned 
General  Waymouth.  "  But  I've  got  that  arm  around 
the  central  pillar  of  your  political  roof,  gentlemen — and 
I've  got  the  strength  to  handle  it!  You've  stated  your 
position  as  a  politician,  Presson.  Now  I'll  state  mine. 
Rather  than  see  the  Republican  temple  made  any  longer 
a  house  of  political  ill-fame  I'll  pull  it  down  on  you 
prostitutes." 

It  was  bitter  taunt — an  insult  delivered  with  calm 
determination  to  sting.  Presson  stamped  about  the 
room  in  his  wrath. 

"  I'm  making  no  pact  or  promise,"  went  on  the  Gen 
eral.  "  I  declare  that  you  are  the  men  who  are  wreck 
ing  our  party.  Now  if  you  propose  to  wreck  it  com 
pletely,  we'll  go  smashing  all  together  in  the  ruins.  It 
may  as  well  be  wrecked  now  as  later!" 

There  was  another  hush  in  the  room. 

"So  I  call  upon  you,  men  of  office,  shop,  and  farm,  bone 
and  sinew  of  our  grand  old  party,"  exhorted  Senator 
Pownal  from  the  forum  outside,  "to  forget  the  petty 
bickerings  of  faction  and  stand  shoulder  to  shoulder  in 
your  march  to  the  polls.  Nail  the  principles  of  justice, 
truth,  and  honesty  to  the  flagstaff,  and  follow  behind 
that  banner,  winning  the  suffrages  of  those  who  believe 
in  the  right." 

"It  sounds  as  though  the  Senator  might  be  arriving 
close  to  his  amen,"  suggested  General  Waymouth, 
ironically.  "You  have  only  a  few  minutes  in  which  to 
decide.  I  hold  the  proxy  of  one  of  these  delegates  to  the 
convention."  He  pointed  to  one  of  the  stolid  and  plain 
men.  "You  know  that  I  can  get  the  ear  of  that  con 
vention — you  can't  work  any  gag-rule  on  me — I  have 
been  listened  to  too  often  by  the  men  of  this  State  when 

218 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

I've  had  something  to  say.  And  you  know  what  effect 
these  affidavits  will  have!" 

There  was  further  silence,  broken  only  by  the  voice 
of  the  Senator  without  and  Presson  within,  who  was 
scuffling  about,  babbling  disjointed  oaths. 

Suddenly  a  great  outburst  of  applause  signified  that 
the  Senator  had  concluded. 

"Go  ahead  out  and  kill  your  party!"  barked  Presson. 
" Give  it  your  strychnine!  It  may  as  well  die  right  now, 
in  a  spasm,  as  to  have  a  lingering  death  later  with  you 
at  the  head  of  it,  Waymouth.  You  can't  team  me!" 

"  You  let  me  say  a  word  right  here!"  blustered  Everett. 
"I  wash  my  hands  of  any  deal  with  Spinney.  I've  got 
the  bulk  of  that  convention  behind  me.  I  don't  propose 
to  be  shunted." 

"I  supposed  you  all  remembered  the  details  of  what 
you  did  last  evening,"  returned  the  General,  coldly.  "Is 
it  necessary  for  me  to  remind  you,  Mr.  Everett,  that 
Chairman  Presson  turned  over  to  Spinney  a  paper  in 
which  you  agreed  to  appoint  him  to  a  State  office  ?  That 
transaction  was  noted  along  with  the  rest,  sir." 

"I'll  have  as  many  witnesses  as  you,"  declared  Pres 
son,  "I'll—" 

"Stop!"  It  was  a  tone  that  cowed  the  chairman, 
struggling  with  his  guilty  conscience.  "I  have  warned 
you  that  I'm  not  here  to  argue  this  matter  with  you. 
I'll  not  be  drawn  into  any  discussion.  What  I  have,  I 
have!"  He  waved  his  papers  above  his  head.  "What 
I  can  do  that  I'll  do!  I  would  remind  you,  gentlemen, 
that  the  convention  is  waiting." 

Thelismer  Thornton  caught  the  secretary  of  the  State 
Committee  by  the  arm  and  propelled  him  toward  the 
door,  ordering  Harlan  to  open  it.  "Signal  that  band! 
Start  it  to  going!"  he  directed.  "Keep  those  delegates 
easy."  He  turned  on  the  chairman.  "Now,  Luke, 
you're  licked.  And  it's  your  own  deadfall  that's  caught 

219 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

you.  I  know  just  how  you  feel,  but  here's  a  laundry-bag 
that  you've  got  to  draw  the  puckering-strings  on.  Shut 
up!  I'm  going  to  save  you  from  yourself.  You're 
running  amuck,  now.  You're  a  lunatic,  and  not  re 
sponsible."  He  dragged  the  defiant  chairman  back  into 
the  room.  He  held  him  in  firm  grip.  "There's  a  new 
bribery  law  in  this  State.  You  haven't  forgotten  it, 
have  you!  It's  State  prison!" 

"Look  here,  gentlemen,"  he  went  on,  addressing  the 
members  of  the  State  Committee,  "you've  got  just  five 
minutes  leeway  between  a  devilish  good  political  wallop 
ing  and  striped  suits.  Get  out  on  the  floor.  Get  busy 
with  those  delegations.  And  the  man  of  all  of  you  who 
dares  to  say  one  word  too  much  about  what's  been  done 
here  to-day  will  peek  through  bars  and  wish  his  tongue 
had  been  torn  out  by  the  roots  before  he  talked !  Presson, 
this  thing  is  out  of  your  hands.  You  sha'n't  cut  your 
own  throat,  I  say!  Get  onto  that  floor,  men!" 

They  went.  It  was  the  rush  of  men  to  save  them 
selves.  Each  man  as  he  passed  out  cast  a  glance  upon 
the  papers  that  General  Waymouth  clutched,  and  a 
second  glance  at  Harlan,  brawny  guard,  at  his  side. 

"Take  Everett  across  to  the  committee-room  and  call 
in  the  men  who  were  to  present  him,"  directed  the  Duke, 
releasing  the  chairman.  "And  it's  up  to  you  two  to 
give  'em  a  story  that  will  hold  'em.  It's  short  notice, 
but  you've  got  General  Waymouth  for  a  text!  Look 
here,  Dave,"  he  whirled  on  Everett,  who  was  frantically 
protesting,  "your  strength  was  the  strength  the  boys  of 
the  machine  put  behind  you.  It  hasn't  been  personal 
strength.  You  can't  afford  to  be  a  blasted  fool  now, 
even  if  you  are  crazy  mad.  You've  been  lecturing  con 
siderably  the  past  few  weeks  on  'party  exigencies.'  This 
is  one.  It's  an  exigency  that  will  put  you  before  a  grand 
jury  if  you  don't  tread  careful.  Get  across  there,  you 
and  Presson!  I'm  eating  dirt  myself.  Get  down  on 

220 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

your  hands  and  knees  with  me,  and  make  believe  you 

like  it!" 

He  hustled  them  out. 

The  band  was  rioting  through  a  jolly  melange  of 
popular  melodies. 

The  old  man  hesitated  a  moment,  and  then  walked 
across  to  the  General. 

"Yard,  politics  is  most  always  a  case  of  dog  eat  dog, 
but  I  want  to  assure  you  that  I'm  not  hungry  just  now 
if  you  are  not!  And  my  grandson  seems  to  have  more 
political  foresight  than  I  gave  him  credit  for.  I'm  get 
ting  old,  I  see!" 

He  did  not  give  them  opportunity  to  answer.  He 
swung  about  and  went  to  Spinney. 

"I  reckon  they'll  raise  your  guard,  now,  Arba,"  he 
said,  nodding  at  the  stolid  and  plain  men.  "There  isn't 
much  more  that  you  can  do,  either  to  harm  or  help. 
You'd  better  pull  a  chair  out  to  the  edge  of  the  stage 
there,  and  listen  to  what  a  h — 1  of  a  fellow  you  are  when 
your  orators  nominate  you.  Then  before  the  applause 
dies  away,  you'd  better  start  for  home.  It  '11  be  a  good 
time  to  get  away  while  Presson  is  busy!"  It  was  plain 
that,  lacking  any  other  object,  the  Duke  was  venting  the 
last  of  his  spleen  on  this  wretched  victim  of  the  game. 
"Before  you  go,  give  me  one  of  those  'Honest  Arba' 
ribbons.  I  keep  a  scrap-book  of  jokes !" 

The  abject  candidate  had  no  word  to  offer  in  reply. 
He  was  white  and  trembling,  for  after  Presson's  early 
declaration  it  had  seemed  that  the  whole  shameful  story 
was  to  be  thundered  in  the  ears  of  those  two  thousand 
men  sitting  yonder. 

"  You  can  suit  yourself  as  to  your  further  movements, 
Spinney,"  said  the  General,  noting  the  man's  distress. 

"  There's  a  rear  exit  from  this  hall,"  remarked  the  Duke, 
significantly. 

Spinney  went  out,  hanging  his  head. 

221 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"Well,  there's  at  least  one  cur  eliminated  from  the 
politics  of  this  State,"  blurted  Harlan,  gratefully. 

"Eliminated!"  sneered  his  grandfather.  "The  first 
man  you'll  meet  in  the  legislative  lobby  next  winter, 
sugar  on  his  speech  and  alum  on  his  finger,  so  that  he 
can  get  a  good  firm  grip  of  your  buttonhole,  will  be 
Arba  Spinney,  drawing  his  salary  as  the  paid  agent  of 
half-a-dozen  schemers.  He  may  seem  a  little  wilted 
just  now,  but  he's  a  hardy  perennial — you  needn't  worry 
about  him." 

"  I  think  you're  the  man  to  take  these  documents  to 
the  Committee  on  Resolutions,  Thelismer,"  stated  the 
General,  drawing  out  the  planks  he  had  submitted  the 
evening  before.  "  You  can  explain  why  they  should 
be  inserted — and  I  have  modified  them  somewhat.  I 
have  no  desire  to  frighten  the  party  at  the  outset." 

The  Duke  took  the  papers,  and  departed  without  a 
word.  The  men  of  the  affidavits  returned  to  their  dele 
gations  on  the  floor  of  the  convention,  gratification  in 
their  faces,  as  well  as  a  sense  of  the  importance  of  the 
secret  they  were  guarding. 

The  band  gave  a  final  bellow,  and  the  business  of  the 
convention  proceeded. 

General  Waymouth  and  Harlan  took  chairs  into  their 
little  room  and  sat  down  to  wait.  The  sounds  came  to 
them  mellowed  by  distance,  but  distinct.  They  followed 
the  procession  of  events. 

Spinney's  name  was  presented  by  an  up-country  spell 
binder  who  had  copied  logic,  diction,  and  demagogic 
arguments  from  his  chief.  But  all  the  thrill,  swing,  and 
excitement  of  the  Spinney  movement  were  gone.  Red 
fire,  hilarity,  and  stimulants  could  not  be  used  to  spice 
this  daylight  gathering  of  men  ranged  in  orderly  rows 
on  their  settees — -and  subtle  suggestion  had  already  gone 
abroad.  Yet  the  undercurrent  of  opposition  to  the 
further  dictation  by  the  party  ring  was  shown  by  the 

222 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

applause  that  greeted  every  reference  by  the  speaker  to 
the  conditions  that  existed  in  the  party.  On  the  text 
of  Spinney,  personating  Protest,  the  orator  preached  to 
willing  converts  who  clamored  for  change,  even  though 
no  better  leader  than  Spinney  offered.  Spinney  got 
perfunctory  applause;  suggested  change  was  cheered 
tumultuously. 

The  convention  was  ripe  for  revolution  against  dom 
inant  conditions,  without  exactly  understanding  how  to 
rebel  wisely  and  well. 

Suddenly  a  clarion  voice  raised  itself  from  the  con 
vention  floor.  They  in  the  little  room  could  hear  every 
word. 

"That's  Linton,"  said  the  General,  calmly.  "He 
balked  under  my  pat,  but  he's  plunging  into  the  traces 
handsomely  under  the  whip!" 

"Linton!  After  refusing?  Is  he  presenting  your 
name?" 

"Oh,  he's  a  politician,  and  one  must  allow  a  politician 
to  weigh  out  his  stock  of  goods  on  his  own  scales,  and 
hope  that  he  will  give  good  measure.  I'll  be  grateful  in 
this  instance,  Mr.  Thornton.  They've  picked  out  an 
able  young  speaker!" 

In  spite  of  his  resentful  opinion  of  Linton,  an  opinion 
into  which  he  would  not  admit  to  himself  that  jealousy 
entered,  Harlan,  as  he  listened,  had  to  acknowledge  the 
ability  of  the  young  lawyer. 

First  he  caught  the  attention  of  his  auditors,  then  he 
skilfully  suggested  that  he  was  preparing  a  surprise. 
With  appealing  frankness  that  won  the  interest  and 
sympathy  of  the  Spinney  adherents,  he  agreed  with  them 
that  the  times  demanded  changes  and  reforms.  He 
urged  that  these  should  be  undertaken  within  the  party, 
and  then,  earnestly  but  delicately,  he  hinted  that  the 
reformers  had  not  picked  the  right  leader.  As  deli 
cately  he  suggested,  next,  that  an  extreme  partisan, 

223 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

bound  far  in  advance  of  nomination  by  factional  pledges 
and  trades  that  he  must  carry  out,  was  not  the  right 
man  to  extricate  the  party,  either.  Lastly,  he  came  to 
the  crux  of  his  speech,  plunging  into  the  theme  with 
passionate  eloquence  that  brought  moisture  to  the  eyes 
of  Harlan.  That  young  man  was  not  thinking  of  the 
orator,  then.  His  thoughts  were  on  the  old  man  at 
whose  side  he  sat — the  old  man  who  listened  in  dignified 
patience. 

Now  the  delegates  sniffed  the  truth.  A  word  had  put 
them  on  the  trail.  They  were  not  sure.  But  they  sus 
pected.  And  mere  suspicion  sent  them  upon  their 
settees,  cheering  wildly.  Distrust  of  Spinney,  sullen 
disloyalty  to  the  machine-created  Everett,  furnished  a 
soil  in  which  hope  for  another  solution  of  the  tangle 
sprang  with  miraculous  growth. 

Linton  waited  until  the  roar  of  voices  died  away. 
They  again  listened  breathlessly,  wondering  whether 
their  own  hopes  had  beguiled  them. 

"From  the  storied  past,  gentlemen  of  the  convention, 
we  draw  precept  and  example,  lesson  and  moral,  hope 
and  inspiration.  As  nature  has  stored  in  the  bowels  of 
the  earth  the  oil  that  serves  the  lighthouse  beacons  of 
to-day,  so  life  has  stored  in  various  reservoirs  human 
experience  that  can  light  the  path  through  troublous 
times  in  these  latter  days.  Written  on  the  scroll  of  his 
tory,  limned  on  the  page  of  law,  we  find  the  words  of 
the  fathers,  sane  and  helpful  thought  and  good  counsel. 
In  days  of  doubt  and  worry  and  despair  we  may  meet 
the  fathers  on  the  written  page.  But,  oh,  how  grand  a 
blessing  for  the  human  race  could  we  sit  at  their  feet  be 
holding  them  in  the  flesh  and  receive  their  teachings! 
If  only  they,  the  fathers,  might  take  us  by  the  hand  and 
lead  us  through  the  devious  tangles  of  public  policy! 
To-day  we  meet  here  in  perplexed  division  as  to  the 
standard-bearer  for  our  next  campaign.  If  up  from 

224 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

that  past  of  sage  counsel  and  unfaltering  faith  there 
might  come  one  who  could  stand  forth  and  expound  the 
lessons  that  we  need,  we  might  take  heart  and  travel 
boldly  on.  But,  gentlemen,  I  bring  you  a  message  of 
greater  hope — more  profound  a  blessing.  Up  from  that 
past  comes  the  standard-bearer  himself !  His  wise  kind 
liness  meets  every  test  of  honest  gentleman ;  scholarship 
crowns  his  brow;  Law  holds  her  torch  aloft  that  his 
feet  may  tread  the  safe  way;  war  from  him  has  taken 
tribute,  but  to  him  has  given  a  hero's  deathless  laurels. 
Once  in  her  history  this  State  welcomed  him  to  her 
councils  as  her  gracious  overlord,  and  now — 

There  was  no  doubt  in  their  minds  now.  A  window- 
shaking  demonstration  bore  down  his  voice. 

Linton  seized  upon  the  beginning  of  silence. 

"  Now  once  again  his  State,  groping  for  a  hand  to  lead 
her  forth  to  stability  and  progress,  sees  his  hand  and 
seeks  to  grasp  it,  supplicating  him :  '  O  father,  guide  me ! 
O  wise  man,  teach  me!  O  hero,  save  me!'  And  I  name 
to  you,  gentlemen,  for  the  candidate  of  the  Republican 
party — " 

He  leaped  upon  a  settee  and  voiced  the  name  of  Gen 
eral  Vardcn  Waymouth  with  all  the  strength  of  his 
trumpet  voice.  But  no  one  heard  what  he  said.  They 
all  knew  what  he  was  to  say.  They  did  not  need  the 
spoken  name. 

That  convention  had  been  ripening  for  a  stampede. 
Its  component  delegates  had  contained  the  stampede 
fever  for  weeks  before  they  assembled.  Men  leaped  and 
screamed.  It  was  a  storm  of  enthusiasm;  two  thousand 
feet  furnished  the  thunder-roar;  hats  went  up  and  came 
down  like  pelting  rain;  and  voices  bellowed  like  the 
bursting  wind  volleys  of  the  gale. 

Here  and  there,  gesticulating  men  were  trying  to  make 
seconding  speeches,  but  the  words  were  lost.  The 
chairman  of  the  convention,  grim  and  pale  and  wonder- 

225 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

ing  just  how  much  damage  this  overturn  signified  to  his 
personal  interests,  nodded  recognition  to  these  speakers, 
and  allowed  them  to  waste  their  words  upon  the  welter 
of  mere  sound. 

He  also  recognized  other  men  who  arose.  He  knew 
them  for  Spinney's  adherents  and  divined  what  they 
were  trying  to  say.  And  having  divined  it,  he  was 
promptly  inspired  to  get  in  with  the  rush  of  those  who 
were  climbing  aboard  the  band-wagon. 

He  advanced  to  the  edge  of  the  platform,  and  by 
tossing  his  arms  secured  a  moment  of  silence.  He  had 
his  own  salvation  to  look  after. 

"  I  am  glad,  inexpressibly  pleased,  that  as  chairman 
of  your  convention  I  can  now  declare  myself  for  General 
Waymouth ;  for  the  convention  has  but  one  name  before 
it — the  name  of  Arba  Spinney  has  been  withdrawn!" 

When  the  tumult  began  again — almost  delirium  this 
time — David  Everett  appeared  from  the  wings,  white, 
stricken,  overwhelmed  by  the  suddenness  with  which  the 
prize  had  been  snatched  beyond  his  reach,  driven  out 
upon  the  stage  by  the  State  Committee  like  a  whipped 
cur  forced  to  perform  his  little  trick  in  public.  He  began 
to  speak,  but  the  delegates  did  not  listen — they  knew 
what  he  was  saying,  and  were  cheering  him.  Not  all  of 
it  was  enthusiasm  for  General  Waymouth ;  men  instantly 
realized  that  a  nasty  split  in  the  party  had  been  bridged ; 
men  felt  that  in  this  new  candidate  both  factions  had 
the  ownership  that  puts  one  "in  right."  A  united 
party  could  now  march  to  the  polls. 

The  nomination  was  by  acclamation! 

They  came  to  General  Waymouth,  where  he  stood 
patiently  at  the  door  of  his  room — -the  committee  ap 
pointed  to  escort  him  before  the  convention.  He 
signalled  for  them  to  precede  him — his  hand  was  inside 
the  arm  of  Harlan  Thornton,  and  he  did  not  withdraw 
it  even  to  shake  the  eager  hands  that  were  outstretched. 

226 


THE  SHEPHERD  AND  THE  SHEEP 

He  walked  upon  the  stage  with  the  young  man,  and,  still 
holding  his  arm,  faced  the  hurricane  of  enthusiasm  until 
it  had  blown  itself  out. 

It  was  a  breathless  hush  in  which  he  spoke. 

"  Our  party,  in  State  Convention  assembled,  has  to-day 
declared  for  honesty."  They  did  not  exactly  under 
stand,  but  they  gave  voice  like  hounds  unleashed.  That 
sentiment  complimented  them.  "I  pledge  the  last 
strength  of  my  old  age  to  the  task  you  have  imposed 
upon  me.  Give  me  your  pledge,  man  to  man,  in  return. 
Shall  it  be  for  all  of  us:  honesty  in  principle  and  un 
swerving  obedience  to  every  party  profession  we  make  ? 
I  await  your  'Yes'!" 

It  came  like  a  thunderclap — two  thousand  voices 
shouting  it. 

He  stood  there,  his  hand  upraised,  waiting  again  until 
the  hush  was  upon  them  once  more.  They  were  ready 
for  the  usual  speech  of  acceptance.  But  he  said  simply 
this: 

"I  accept  the  trust!" 

He  put  his  hand  behind  Harlan's  guarding  elbow  and 
retired. 

"A  carriage  at  once,  Mr.  Thornton,"  he  directed.  "I 
must  save  myself  for  performance,  not  parade." 

They  were  away  before  even  the  eager  platform 
notables  could  intercept  them.  The  cheering  was  still 
going  on  when  the  carriage  started.  From  the  open 
windows  of  the  hall  the  riot  of  the  convention — voices 
and  music — pursued  them  until  the  racket  of  the  busy 
street  drowned  it  out. 

"At  the  present  moment,  Mr.  Thornton,  it  is  not  likely 
that  the  Republican  State  Committee  is  in  a  mood  for 
poetry,"  remarked  General  Waymouth.  Gayety  that 
was  a  bit  wistful  had  succeeded  his  sombre  earnest 
ness. 

"But  something  in  the  sentiment  of  this  old  song 

16  227 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

might  appeal  to  them  while  they  are  thinking  of  me  just 
now: 

"'The  mother  may  forget  the  child 

That  smiles  so  sweetly  on  her  knee; 
But  I'll  remember  thee,  Glencairn, 

And  all  that  thou  hast  done  to  me.'" 

Harlan  did  not  reply.  At  that  moment,  strangely 
enough,  something  besides  the  fury  and  the  results  of 
that  tremendous  convention  occupied  his  thoughts. 
While  he  had  stood  beside  General  Waymouth  he  had 
not  looked  down  into  the  pit  of  roaring  humanity.  He 
had  looked  straight  up  into  the  eyes  of  Madeleine  Presson, 
whose  gaze,  by  some  chance,  caught  his  the  moment  he 
stepped  upon  the  platform.  She  had  leaned  on  the 
gallery-rail  and  studied  him  intently.  In  spite  of  all  else 
that  had  happened  and  was  happening,  he  could  not  help 
wondering  why. 


CHAPTER  XIX 


THE    RAMRODDERS    RAMPANT 

HOUGH  Mrs.  Luke  Presson  was  not  es 
pecially  interested  in  the  practical  side  of 
plain  politics,  yet  it  was  a  part  of  her 
social  methods  to  make  tame  cats  of  men 
of  State  influence  as  far  as  she  was  able. 
She  did  this  instinctively,  rather  from  the 
social  viewpoint  than  the  political.  Luke  Presson  did  not 
take  her  into  his  confidence  to  the  extent  that  he  desired 
her  to  cultivate  men  of  power  for  his  own  purposes.  He 
only  dimly  and  rather  contemptuously  recognized  that 
women  had  any  influence  in  political  matters.  But  it 
did  occur  to  him,  after  that  State  convention,  that  per 
haps  he  needed  his  wife  to  assist  him  in  beginning  a 
reconciliation  with  General  Waymouth. 

Mrs.  Presson  came  to  him,  directly  the  convention  had 
adjourned.  The  few  men  who  were  lingering  in  head 
quarters  dodged  out,  for  they  perceived  that  the  chair 
man's  wife  had  something  on  her  mind. 

He  endured  her  indignant  reproaches  for  some  time. 
She  taxed  him  with  betrayal  of  her  personal  interests. 

"I've  never  tried  to  pry  into  your  schemes.  I  don't 
care  about  them.  But  when  you  make  a  fool  of  me  in 
regard  to  the  next  Governor  of  this  State,  you  shall  an 
swer  for  it  to  me!" 

"  I  did  no  such  thing,"  he  protested,  wanting  to  placate 
her  for  private  reasons  of  his  own. 

"I  say  you  did.    You're  chairman  of  the  State  Com- 
229 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

mittee.  You  knew  which  man  would  be  nominated — 
you  must  have  known  it  all  along.  You  wouldn't  be 
State  chairman  if  you  didn't  know  that!" 

The  unhappy  magnate  was  ashamed  to  tell  her  the 
bitter  truth. 

"You  allowed  me  to  come  here  to-day  with  Mrs. 
Dave  Everett  and  her  daughters.  Here  is  the  bouquet 
I  brought  to  present  to  her  husband!"  She  shook  it 
under  his  nose  and  tossed  it  into  a  corner.  "You  never 
told  me  a  word  about  the  plan  to  nominate  General 
Waymouth.  It  was  deliberate  deceit  on  your  part — for 
what  reason  I  cannot  understand." 

Presson  tried  to  think  of  a  story  that  would  explain 
and  shield  him,  but  the  convention  had  not  been  an 
affair  to  promote  clear  thinking. 

"Here's  a  legislative  session  at  hand,  and  you've  al 
lowed  me  to  stay  entirely  out  of  touch  with  the  next 
first  gentleman  of  the  State!  I'm  like  all  the  rest  of  the 
trailers,  now.  I  haven't  any  prior  social  claim  on  him. 
And  I  can't  even  find  him  at  this  late  hour  to  offer  my 
congratulations . ' ' 

"I  haven't  been  able  to  offer  mine,  either,"  said  the 
chairman,  grimly. 

"I'll  endure  no  more  of  this  foolery,  Luke!  If  you 
propose  to  make  a  plaything  of  your  own  wife  from  now 
on — " 

"I'm  telling  you  the  truth.  General  Waymouth 
hurried  out  of  the  hall  before  I  could  get  to  him.  That 
devilish  Canibas  bull  moose  picked  him  up,  like  he's  been 
picking  up — " 

But  the  astonishment  in  his  wife's  eyes  stopped  him. 
He  was  revealing  too  much  of  his  secret. 

"Why,  Harlan  Thornton  went  away  with  him— 
Thelismer's  grandson !  Some  one  told  me  who  saw  them 
in  the  carriage  together.  What  do  you  mean  by 
Canibas  moose?" 

230 


THE  RAM RODDERS  RAMPANT 

"Can't  you  see  that  I'm  all  stirred  up  by  the  excite 
ment  of  this  convention  ?"  he  demanded.  "  I  don't  know 
what  I'm  saying.  I'll  explain  to  you  later,  Lucretia." 

"I  think  you'd  better.  Where  did  General  Way- 
mouth  go?" 

"To  the  hotel,  I  suppose." 

"  No,  he's  not  there.  I  have  telephoned.  Luke,  we 
must  have  him  at  lunch  with  us.  It's  his  place  to  lunch 
with  us — you're  the  chairman  of  the  State  Committee ! 
It's  a  late  start  for  me — and  it's  your  own  fault  because 
it  is  so.  But  you  must  find  the  General  and  make  him 
come  to  luncheon.  I  have  arranged  for  the  party  in 
the  English  Room  at  the  hotel.  You  must  have  him 
there!"  She  hurried  away  to  where  the  ladies  were 
waiting  for  her. 

Presson,  the  politician's  instinct  of  self-preservation 
now  getting  the  better  of  his  rancor,  promptly  determin 
ed  that  his  own  interests  would  be  helped  by  his  wife's 
luncheon-party,  provided  the  victor  could  be  cajoled  and 
coralled.  He  put  pride  behind  him.  It  was  not  so 
easy  to  do  as  much  with  his  shame  and  the  downright 
fear  that  assailed  him  when  he  reflected  on  his  plot  and  its 
outcome.  But  he  decided  that  although  little  might  be 
gained  for  him  by  making  up  to  the  victorious  General, 
a  great  deal  would  be  surely  lost  if  the  antagonism  were 
emphasized. 

He  put  on  his  hat  and  hurried  to  the  street.  Inquiry 
at  the  cab-stand  afforded  him  the  information  that 
General  Waymouth  and  his  companion  had  not  given  a 
definite  destination.  "But  there's  the  man  who  took 
them,"  said  the  manager.  "  He's  just  back.  Ask  him." 

The  driver  said  that  he  had  dropped  them  at  the  park, 
at  their  request,  and  the  chairman  jumped  into  the 
carriage,  directing  that  he  be  conveyed  to  the  same  place. 

He  found  them  sitting  democratically  on  a  bench, 
taking  the  air. 

231 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Without  preliminary  the  chairman  extended  Mrs. 
Presson's  in  .i.ation.  "There  will  be  a  very  small  party 
of  us,  and  it  may  save  you  from  the  annoyances  of  the 
public  rooms,"  added  Chairman  Presson,  humbly. 

The  General  arose  and  accepted  with  cordiality,  some 
what  to  Harlan's  surprise,  for  his  unbending  youth  could 
not  yet  understand  how  political  hatchets  could  be  buried 
so  quickly. 

"I  want  to  congratulate  you,  General,"  said  the  chair 
man  on  the  way  to  the  carriage.  "And  I  want  to  tell 
you  that  the  State  Committee  will  swing  into  line  behind 
you  for  the  campaign.  You'll  find  us  loyal.  There's 
a  good  deal  more  I'd  like  to  say,  but  there'll  be  time 
enough  for  that  later.  I'll  merely  say  this:  both  of  us 
have  been  in  politics  years  enough,  I  believe,  to  be  able 
to  wash  a  convention  slate  clean,  when  it's  a  question  of 
a  State  campaign  against  the  opposite  party." 

"I'll  meet  you  frankly  on  that  plane,  Mr.  Presson.  I 
have  too  much  ahead  of  me  to  waste  time  in  quarrels. 
It  isn't  my  nature  to  retaliate.  I  have  understood  the 
situation  better  than  some  men  would." 

Harlan,  hoping  that  the  chairman  appreciated  that 
magnanimity,  gave  Presson  a  look  that  expressed  much. 
But  in  his  new  humility  the  latter  was  getting  rid  of 
ancient  grudges  as  fast  as  he  could.  While  the  General 
was  entering  the  carriage,  the  chairman  offered  rather 
embarrassed  apology.  "  But  you  introduced  some 
original  specialties  in  politics  that  took  me  off  my  feet, 
young  man!"  he  added,  with  a  sickly  smile. 

Harlan  was  still  a  little  stiff.  It  was  not  easy  for  him 
to  get  into  the  state  of  political  pliability  that  he  saw 
others  assume  so  readily. 

"I'm  a  countryman,  and  pretty  awkward  in  most 
everything  I  undertake,"  he  said.  "  I  have  no  business 
meddling  in  the  big  affairs  of  this  State.  I'll  take  my 
place  where  I  belong,  after  this,  Mr.  Presson.  If  I 

232 


THE    RAMRODDERS    RAMPANT 

don't,  I'll  not  have  a  friend  left — not  even  my  own 
grandfather." 

The  chairman  glanced  at  him  curiously,  scenting  some 
thing  like  duplicity  under  this  bitter  frankness.  He 
was  not  used  to  seeing  men  throw  aside  such  advantages 
as  this  young  man  had  gained. 

The  three  entered  the  hotel  through  the  side  door,  and 
at  the  General's  request  the  chairman  accompanied  him 
and  his  young  lieutenant  to  their  headquarters.  It  was 
near  the  luncheon  hour,  and  Presson  had  suggested  that 
he  conduct  them  to  Mrs.  Presson. 

A  party  of  men  had  taken  possession  of  the  General's 
suite.  They  rose  when  he  entered.  They  paid  no  at 
tention  to  Harlan,  but  surveyed  Chairman  Presson  with 
disfavor  that  was  very  noticeable. 

Several  of  the  men  were  clergymen,  advertised  as  such 
by  their  white  ties  and  frock-coats.  Those  who  attended 
them  had  the  unmistakable  air  of  zealots.  Their  de 
meanor  showed  that  they  had  come  on  business  that 
they  considered  serious. 

General  Waymouth  knew  them.  He  addressed  one  or 
two  by  name,  and  was  gracious  in  his  greeting  of  the  others. 

"We  wait  on  you,"  began  their  spokesman,  one  of 
the  ministers,  "as  a  committee  from  the  United  Tem 
perance  Societies." 

"  My  time  is  not  my  own  just  now,  gentlemen,"  ex 
plained  General  Waymouth.  "  I  have  a  luncheon  en 
gagement  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Presson.  I  will  see  you  at 
some  other  time." 

The  faces  of  all  of  them  grew  saturnine  at  that  an 
nouncement.  For  Chairman  Presson  was  not  recog 
nized  as  the  especial  friend  of  prohibition  by  the  fanatics 
of  the  State. 

The  clergyman,  following  his  line  of  duty,  was  not  in 
a  mood  to  accept  delicate  hints  regarding  social  engage 
ments.  He  stood  his  ground. 

233 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"Our  business  will  occupy  but  a  short  time,  and  I 
suggest  that  it  will  be  for  your  personal  interest  to 
listen  now,  sir." 

It  was  an  unfortunate  bit  of  obstinacy. 

"  I  regulate  my  own  hours  for  engagements,  Mr. 
Prouty.  You  have  come  on  your  own  business,  and  it 
must  await  my  convenience." 

"It's  your  business  I  come  on,  General  Waymouth, 
and  I  advise  you  to  listen!  And  I  will  add  that  it  will 
not  help  you  with  the  temperance  people  of  this  State 
if  they  are  told  that  within  two  hours  after  your  nomi 
nation  you  are  consorting  with  the  arch-enemy  of  tem 
perance  reform  in  our  midst!" 

With  two  strides  the  General  was  back  at  his  door. 
He  opened  it. 

"Be  so  kind  as  to  leave  the  room,  gentlemen,"  he 
invited,  icily.  "  I'll  not  detain  you  even  to  have  you 
apologize  for  your  intrusion  on  my  privacy  or  ask  par 
don  of  a  guest  whom  you've  insulted!" 

They  obeyed  him,  sullenly.  Even  their  effrontery 
could  not  withstand  that  dignity.  But  they  muttered 
among  themselves,  and  one  man  called  back  over  his 
shoulder:  "It  isn't  the  first  time,  General,  that  a  man 
brave  enough  to  lead  battle  charges  hasn't  shown  that 
he's  got  the  spirit  to  declare  for  the  right  against  the 
wrong,  when  politics  stands  by  with  open  ears!" 

"There  go  some  of  the  reformers  you  were  asking 
your  grandfather  about  a  few  weeks  ago,  Harlan," 
sneered  the  indignant  chairman.  "Those  are  the  men 
who  are  holding  themselves  up  as  examples  for  all  the 
rest  of  men  to  follow.  Every  one  else  is  a  rummy  and 
a  hellion,  according  to  their  ranking." 

"As  bad  an  element  as  the  rumsellers  themselves," 
declared  the  General — "men  of  that  type!  I'm  speaking 
now  of  the  interests  of  true  reform — reform  that  gets  to 
the  individual  and  is  something  else  than  this  ever- 

234 


THE    RAMRODDERS    RAMPANT 

lasting  wrangle  and  racket  between  factions.  I  like 
fighting,  but  I  like  to  have  a  natural  fighter  admit  he's 
in  it  just  for  the  sake  of  fighting — not  claim  it's  all  for 
morality's  sake!" 

"Then  what  are  you?"  blurted  Presson,  but  checked 
himself  in  evident  confusion. 

"Eh?"  inquired  General  Waymouth,  mildly. 

"  I — I  don't  know  what  it  was  I  had  in  my  mind — 
guess  I  was  thinking  about  something  else." 

But  the  General  smiled  as  though  he  understood. 
Then  he  went  into  the  inner  room,  explaining  that  he 
wished  to  make  himself  presentable  to  the  ladies. 

The  chairman  took  a  crafty  survey  of  Harlan. 

"  Between  you  and  me,  my  boy,"  he  said,  getting 
back  upon  his  old-time  footing  with  Thornton's  grand 
son,  "  the  General  has  got  both  of  my  eyes  put  out,  so 
far's  his  politics  go.  Did  you  hear  him  just  rip  into 
those  ramrodders?  And  yet  he's  been  stiffer  and 
straighter  than  the  worst  of  'em  since  he  struck  this 
city.  I'd  like  to  know  who  in  thunder  he  is  playing 
with,  anyway!  What  does  he  say  to  you,  on  the  side?" 

"  You'd  better  get  General  Waymouth's  plans  from 
himself,  Mr.  Presson." 

"  I'm  not  asking  you  to  betray  anything.  But  he's 
got  a  policy,  of  course.  I  only  want  to  know  it,  so  that 
I  can  grab  in  with  him.  But  I  can't  figure  anything,  so 
far." 

"  I  thought  he  made  himself  pretty  plain  last  night." 

"  He  made  himself  plain,  I'll  admit  that.  Plain  that 
he's  against  everything  that  the  party  management 
stands  for.  But  now  he  turns  around  and  kicks  out  the 
other  crowd !  He's  got  to  pick  his  gait  and  take  a  posi 
tion  somewhere!" 

"That's  something  I  know  nothing  about,  sir." 

The  chairman  grew  testy.  He  felt  that  he  was  being 
played  with. 

235 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"Seeing  that  you're  in  close  to  the  Amalgamated 
Order  of  Angels,  you'd  better  drop  him  a  hint  that  run 
ning  a  political  campaign  isn't  like  stampeding  a  con 
vention.  The  State  Committee  stands  ready  to  help, 
and  before  he  gets  much  further  along  he'll  find  he 
needs  the  help.  You'd  better  make  that  plain  to  him." 

His  guest  of  honor  reappeared  then,  and  the  chair 
man  led  the  way.  Harlan  had  been  included  in  his  in 
vitation,  and  attended  his  chief. 

With  old-fashioned  gallantry,  General  Waymouth 
made  his  compliments  to  the  ladies  whom  Mrs.  Presson 
had  assembled  to  grace  the  occasion.  Her  little  crust 
of  social  earth  had  been  tossed  alarmingly  by  the  politi 
cal  earthquake,  but  she  felt  that  now  she  was  finding 
safe  footing  once  more. 

Thelismer  Thornton  was  there,  so  were  Senator 
Pownal  and  the  secretary  of  the  State  Committee,  and 
a  few  other  favored  ones  whom  the  hostess  had  sought 
as  being  close  to  the  new  order  of  things.  She  led  for 
ward  Linton. 

"And  now,  General,  we're  all  wondering  just  how  nice 
a  compliment  you'll  pay  to  the  orator  whose  eloquence 
makes  you  the  next  Governor  of  our  State,"  chattered 
the  good  lady,  poorly  informed  as  to  real  conditions, 
but  anxious  to  force  a  situation  for  her  favorite.  "  Her 
bert  has  been  so  modest  about  it!  We've  been  telling 
him  just  how  grand  we  thought  it  was." 

"I  thank  you,  Linton,  for  what  you  said."  The  Gen 
eral  took  the  young  man's  hand.  "You  have  wonder 
ful  gifts  of  eloquence." 

But  there  did  not  seem  to  be  the  enthusiasm  which 
the  importunate  Mrs.  Presson  desired. 

"With  all  due  respect  to  your  greatness,  General, 
isn't  it  true  that  he  turned  the  convention — has  made 
you  Governor?"  she  insisted,  half  in  jest  to  cover  her 
earnestness. 

236 


THE    RAMRODDERS    RAMPANT 

"If  it  comes  about  that  I'm  the  next  Governor  of  this 
State,"  he  returned,  gently,  "it  will  be  due  entirely  to 
this  young  man."  He  patted  Harlan's  shoulder  affec 
tionately.  "Just  how  he  has  accomplished  it  is  a  very 
deep  political  secret  between  us  two.  I  present  my  grand 
vizier,  ladies  and  gentlemen!"  They  understood  that 
seriousness  lay  behind  his  whimsical  manner  of  speech. 

Two  very  round  eyes  testified  to  Mrs.  Presson's 
amazement.  But  once  more  she  found  her  social  feet 
after  this  echo  of  the  main  quake.  She  took  Harlan's 
hand,  and  placed  it  on  the  chair  next  to  that  of  her 
daughter. 

"You'll  sit  here,  if  you  please,  Mr.  Thornton,"  she 
said,  urbanely. 

For  a  little  while  a  trifle  of  embarrassment  shaded  the 
few  words  the  young  couple  addressed  to  each  other, 
under  cover  of  the  general  conversation  about  the  board. 
Then  Harlan,  glancing  down  the  table,  saw  Linton 
staring  gloomily  in  his  direction.  And  at  that  look  his 
spirits  leaped  like  a  steed  under  the  spur.  What  he  had 
not  dared,  considering  himself  on  his  own  merits,  he 
ventured  now.  If  vague,  hidden  sentiment,  as  he  had 
thought  of  Clare  Kavanagh,  had  restrained  him  in  the 
past,  it  no  longer  restrained  him  now. 

The  excitement  of  the  day  had  given  him  a  queer 
exaltation.  He  had  been  one  of  the  chiefs  in  the  arena 
where  all  the  great  State  looked  on  at  the  combatants. 
The  overlord  had  just  given  him  soul-stirring  proof  of 
his  affection,  half  in  jest  as  Harlan  realized,  remember 
ing  the  occasion  for  it,  but  it  was  none  the  less  gratify 
ing.  Madeleine  Presson  had  looked  at  him  with  strange, 
new  interest  in  her  gaze  when  the  General  spoke  out.  It 
had  occurred  to  Harlan  that  it  was  not  the  same  good- 
humored  tolerance  which  she  had  so  frequently  shown 
in  her  past  relations  with  the  bashful  woodsman.  His 
unquiet  grudge  against  Linton  spiced  the  whole. 

237 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

He  turned  to  the  girl. 

She  seemed  altogether  desirable.  Something  in  her 
eyes  responded  to  his  own  feelings.  And  after  that  he 
seemed  to  be  listening  to  himself  talking — and  won 
dered  at  the  new  man  he  had  become. 

When  it  was  over,  and  the  ladies  rose  from  the  table 
to  follow  Mrs.  Presson,  he  tried,  feeling  guilty  for  a  mo 
ment,  to  remember  the  look  that  Linton  had  given  him 
and  to  excuse  himself  as  one  who  had  simply  shown  the 
proper  spirit  of  revenge.  But  when  he  took  her  hand 
he  said:  "  My  grandfather  carried  me  away  from  you  and 
your  mother  in  very  ungallant  fashion  yesterday.  And 
he  tried  to  put  ungallant  words  into  my  mouth.  I  trust 
you'll  allow  me  to  disprove  them.  I'd  like  the  priv 
ilege  of  being  your  obedient  squire  on  the  trip  home." 

"So  now  that  you've  become  a  very  big  man  you've 
decided  that  grandfathers  shall  no  longer  be  indulged 
in  tyranny?"  she  asked,  with  a  dash  of  malicious 
fun. 

"I  view  matters  in  a  new  light,"  he  replied. 

"And  there's  a  wonderful  psychology  in  light,  so 
they  who  have  studied  the  matter  tell  us,"  she  said, 
mischief  in  her  eyes.  "But  we'll  not  go  so  deeply  into 
the  matter.  Let  it  be  a  light  that  will  guide  your  foot 
steps  to  our  rooms  at  train-time.  You  will  find  us 
awaiting  our  squire!" 

General  Waymouth  excused  himself  as  soon  as  the 
ladies  had  retired.  The  little  group  of  men  had  prompt 
ly  begun  to  canvass  the  outlook  and  plans,  but  he  de 
murred  politely  when  they  desired  to  drag  him  into 
the  discussion. 

"Not  yet,  gentlemen!  We  have  had  enough  of  talk 
in  the  last  few  hours.  Let  me  escape  to  the  old  brick 
house  up  in  Burnside  for  a  while.  My  train  goes  shortly. 
Will  you  accompany  me,  Harlan?"  It  was  the  first 
time  he  had  used  the  young  man's  christian-name 

238 


THE    RAMRODDERS    RAMPANT 

Harlan  flushed  with  pleasure.  "  I  will  see  that  you  get 
back  here  in  good  season  to  bring  that  guiding  light," 
he  murmured,  to  the  other's  confusion. 

"I  do  not  like  to  seem  too  exacting — too  persistent 
in  requiring  your  attendance,"  protested  the  General,  as 
they  returned  along  the  corridor.  The  great  hotel  was 
nigh  deserted.  The  delegates  had  hurried  away  on  the 
convention  specials.  "But  you  have  protected  me  from 
a  great  many  annoyances,  to  put  the  situation  mildly. 
I  am  calling  you  away  now  to  make  a  very  special  re 
quest  of  you.  We  will  speak  of  it  on  the  way  to  the 
station." 

Ranged  in  front  of  the  door  of  his  suite  was  the  dele 
gation  from  the  temperance  societies,  patiently  waiting, 
more  saturnine  than  before. 

The  Reverend  Mr.  Prouty  intercepted  them  with  de 
termination. 

"  I  do  not  like  to  seem  too  persistent  in  this  matter, 
but  we  feel  that  we  have  a  right  to  a  few  moments 
of  your  time,  sir.  You  are  accepting  public  office, 
and — 

"  I  do  not  care  to  have  any  lessons  in  politics  read  to 
me,  Mr.  Prouty.  State  your  business." 

"We  prefer  to  see  you  in  private." 

"  And  I  prefer  to  have  you  talk  before  a  reliable  wit 
ness.  Mr.  Thornton  is  such,  and  he  is  entirely  in  my 
confidence." 

He  did  not  invite  them  into  his  room. 

"  We  represent  the  united  temperance  societies  of  this 
State,"  began  the  clergyman. 

"I  understand  perfectly,"  put  in  the  General.  "And 
in  order  that  we  may  thoroughly  understand  each  other 
I  will  inform  you  that  I  know  exactly  what  corporate 
interests  are  furnishing  money  to  you  and  your  campaign 
managers.  I  have  been  very  careful  to  keep  posted  on 
these  matters,  gentlemen!" 

239 


For  a  moment  Mr.  Prouty  was  visibly  taken  aback. 

"It  is  necessary  to  finance  even  righteousness,"  he 
said,  at  last. 

"  Beyond  question,"  admitted  the  General.  "  I  only 
ask  you  to  meet  me  on  the  business  basis  where  you  be 
long.  I'll  not  allow  you  to  mask  factional  interests  be 
hind  religion  or  a  moral  issue.  I  don't  mean  to  be  curt 
or  disobliging,  gentlemen,  but  you  must  get  out  in  the 
open.  You  have  something  to  ask  me  ?  Ask  it.  You'll 
receive  a  plain  answer." 

"Do  you  intend  to  enforce  the  prohibitory  law?" 

"  I  question  your  good  taste,  Mr.  Prouty,  in  selecting 
one  law  and  asking  a  prospective  Governor  whether  he 
intends  to  do  his  sworn  duty  in  regard  to  it." 

"  But  other  Governors  have  not  done  so.  We  propose 
to  have  pledges  after  this.  We'll  vote  for  no  more 
nullifiers." 

"  Other  Governors  have  had  no  direct  power  to  enforce 
the  law,  sir.  I  had  no  power  when  I  was  Governor.  But 
I'll  assure  you  that  if  I  am  the  next  Governor  I  shall 
demand  that  power  from  the  legislature,  and  I'll  enforce 
that  law  with  all  the  resources  of  the  State  treasury.  If 
it's  in  the  power  of  man  to  accomplish  it,  the  sale  of 
liquor  shall  be  stopped  in  this  State." 

They  plainly  had  not  expected  that.  His  attitude 
toward  them,  his  association  with  the  nullifier  Presson 
had  suggested  that  he  intended  to  carry  out  the  usual 
"let  it  alone"  programme.  They  applauded. 

"  One  moment,  gentlemen.  That  doesn't  mean  that  I 
or  any  other  man,  or  that  the  prohibitory  law,  as  we  have 
it,  or  any  other  mere  law,  can  stop  the  drinking  of  liquor 
in  this  State.  I'm  speaking  only  of  the  open  sale  of  it. 
I  know  perfectly  well  that  my  attempt  to  make  men 
sober  by  law  alone  will  fail  miserably.  As  it  is  ad 
ministered  now,  the  law  still  caters  to  appetite  and  public 
demand  for  privileges,  and  the  public  goes  along  without 

240 


THE    RAMRODDERS    RAMPANT 

especial  disturbance.  But  as  I  shall  enforce  the  pro 
hibitory  law,  conditions  will  be  so  intolerable  in  this  State 
that  the  way  will  be  paved  for  a  common-sense  treatment 
of  the  liquor  question.  I  shall  enforce  in  order  to  show 
how  wrong  the  prohibitory  principles  are.  They  have 
not  been  shown  up  so  far,  for  the  law  has  not  been  en 
forced." 

The  delegates  were  disconcerted.  The  spokesman's 
face  grew  red. 

"  Do  you  dare,  sir,  as  a  candidate  for  Governor  of  a 
prohibition  State,  to  stand  up  here  before  these  rep 
resentatives  of  the  temperance  societies  and  say  you 
are  opposed  to  prohibition?" 

"I  certainly  do,"  declared  the  unruffled  General. 
"For  this  State  is  not  a  prohibition  State!  It  fatuously 
thinks  it  is  when  the  citizens  can  get  all  the  liquor  they 
want  without  trouble.  I  merely  propose  to  put  it  to  the 
test  of  honesty." 

"You  declare  yourself  an  enemy,  then,  do  you?" 

"  Mr.  Prouty,  there  you  launch  yourself  into  your 
usual  intemperance !  At  the  first  word  of  another  man's 
dignified  difference  of  opinion  you  shout  'enemy'  and 
prepare  to  fight!  I  want  to  ask  you  and  your  sup 
porters  here  a  question:  Will  you  meet  with  representa 
tives  of  all  the  interests  concerned  in  this  matter,  in 
cluding  the  liquor  men  and  those  who  use  liquor  in  its 
various  forms,  and  endeavor  to  arrive  at  some  com 
promise  in  this  State  which  shall  put  a  stop  to  what  is 
practically  civil  war,  in  which  we  are  expending  all  our 
energies  without  accomplishing  any  real  betterment  of 
conditions  ?  Will  you  agree  to  some  middle  ground,  if  it 
can  be  shown  that  more  men  can  be  made  sober  and  less 
men  hypocrites?" 

"  I  stand  solely  for  the  principle  of  prohibition,  un 
swerving  till  death,"  announced  the  clergyman.  His 
partisans  applauded. 

241 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"  You  won't  stop  and  listen  to  what  may  be  for  the 
actual  best  interests  of  our  State,  then?" 

"  I'll  not  license  crime  nor  compound  felonies  with 
criminals." 

"  Mr.  Prouty,  as  Governor  I  signed  the  first  prohibi 
tion  law  passed  in  this  State.  It  was  on  trial.  I  was 
liberal  enough  to  bend  my  own  personal  views  to  give 
it  that  trial.  When  I'm  thinking  of  my  State  I  don't 
insist  that  my  way  is  the  only  way.  Now,  sir,  if  you 
knew  that,  as  citizens,  not  mere  partisans,  we  could  all 
get  together  and  frame  something  better  than  a  law  that 
has  bred  evils  of  political  corruption  through  all  the  years 
without  altering  the  appetites  of  the  people — if  you  knew 
that,  wouldn't  you  remould  some  of  your  opinions  and 
help  us  bring  about  the  best  good  for  the  whole  of  us?" 

"  I'll  not  abate  my  loyalty  to  prohibition  one  jot  or 
tittle!" 

"  In  your  case  and  in  the  case  of  the  kind  of  fanatics 
who  train  with  you,"  declared  the  General,  with  disgust 
in  tone  and  mien,  "that  word  'prohibition'  is  simply  a 
fetish — a  rally-call  for  a  fight.  It  is  you,  sir,  and  such 
as  you,  who  are  holding  this  State  back  from  real  prog 
ress.  I'm  not  discussing  the  liquor  question  alone.  I 
haven't  patience  to  discuss  it  with  you.  I'm  reterring  to 
the  spirit  that  actuates  you.  Your  kind  sat  as  judges 
in  the  Inquisition.  Prohibition  now  offers  an  oppor 
tunity  for  your  bigotry — that's  why  you  cling  to  it. 
You  cling  to  it  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it  has  made  more 
than  drunkards — it  has  made  liars  and  thieves  and  per 
jurers  and  grafters  out  of  men  who  would  not  otherwise 
have  been  tempted.  When  men  arise  to  tell  the  truth 
about  it,  you  get  behind  your  morality  mask  and  accuse 
them  of  the  basest  motives  and  claim  immunity  for  your 
selves  from  attack  in  return.  I  fear  I  am  a  little  severe, 
sir,  but  your  attitude  showed  that  you  came  to  me  with 
appetite  for  a  quarrel." 

242 


THE  RAM RODDERS  RAMPANT 

"I'll  see  to  it,"  declared  Mr.  Prouty,  hotly,  "that  five 
hundred  ministers  in  this  State  denounce  you  from  their 
pulpits  as  an  enemy  to  temperance." 

"  You  don't  know  what  temperance  is !"  General  Way- 
mouth  brushed  past  them.  "  Your  definition  slanders 
the  word.  I  shall  be  glad  to  have  your  support,  gentle 
men,  at  the  polls.  But  I  am  for  the  State,  not  for  your 
faction  or  any  other  faction.  I  know  you  are  not  used 
to  hearing  a  candidate  tell  you  the  truth — it  has  not 
been  the  style  in  this  State.  If  the  truth  from  me  has 
shocked  you,  blame  the  truth,  not  me." 

He  ushered  Harlan  before  him  and  closed  his  door 
upon  the  delegation. 

"  It's  a  sad  feature  of  public  affairs  in  this  State,  my 
young  friend,"  said  he,  when  they  were  alone,  "that  so 
large  a  mass  of  the  people,  who  naturally  are  sane  and 
moderate,  allow  those  paid  agents  of  so-called  reform  to 
serve  as  popular  mouth-pieces.  Reform  for  reform's 
sake  supersedes  reform  for  the  people's  sake.  Candidates 
have  been  afraid  of  those  mouths.  Such  mouths  as 
those  outside  there  assert  that  they  are  talking  for  the 
whole  people  in  the  name  of  morality,  but  there  are 
only  a  few  mouths  of  that  kind.  It  is  time  to  test  it  out. 
I  propose  to  see  whether  the  people  will  not  follow  the 
real  thing  in  honesty  instead  of  the  mere  protestation 
of  it." 

On  the  way  to  the  station  the  General  preferred  his 
request.  It  was  that  Harlan  become  his  Executive  of 
ficer  in  the  approaching  campaign — his  chief  of  staff, 
his  companion,  his  buffer,  protecting  him  from  the  as 
saults  of  the  politicians. 

"  Before  the  campaign  really  opens  there  will  be  three 
weeks  or  so  in  which  you  may  attend  to  your  own  affairs. 
You  remember  that  it  was  you  that  dragged  me  into  this, 
young  man!"  It  was  the  old  jest,  but  it  had  taken  on 
meaning  within  twenty  -  four  hours.  "  You  have  seen 

17  243 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

with  your  own  eyes,  heard  with  your  ears,  how  I  stand 
alone  between  factions  which  are  willing  to  sacrifice  the 
State  in  order  to  win  for  their  own  interests.  I  have 
planted  my  standard  between  'em!  I'll  try  to  rally  an 
army  to  it  that  will  leave  the  extremists  of  both  those 
sides  hopelessly  deserted  by  the  rank  and  file  of  the 
honest  citizens.  I  need  you  with  me,  for  you  have  been 
with  me  from  the  start, and  you  have  shown  your  fitness  " 
(he  smiled),  "even  to  securing  an  audience  with  the 
Honorable  Spinney.  Is  it  yes,  my  young  friend?" 

"  It  is  yes,  General  Waymouth.  I  question  my 
ability — I  know  it  is  poor.  But  of  my  loyalty  there  is  no 
question." 

The  General  grasped  his  hand.  They  were  at  the  car 
steps.  "It  shall  be  'Boots  and  saddles!'  three  weeks 
from  to-day!" 

Linton  was  in  the  parlors  of  the  hotel  with  the  Presson 
party  when  Harlan  arrived,  glowing  with  his  new  en 
thusiasm,  confident  in  his  new  elevation  in  the  affairs  of 
men.  In  the  affairs  of  women  he  was  not  quite  as  sure 
of  his  desires  or  his  standing,  but  his  mood  was  new, 
and  he  realized  it.  He  went  straight  to  Madeleine  Pres 
son.  Twenty-four  hours  before  the  presence  of  Linton 
at  her  side  would  have  held  him  aloof. 

He  put  out  his  hand  to  the  young  lawyer,  and  Linton 
took  it. 

"  I  extend  my  congratulations  rather  late,  but  they 
are  sincere.  It  was  a  noble  speech.  You  put  in  words 
my  own  thoughts  regarding  a  noble  man." 

"  Perhaps  you  could  have  expressed  those  thoughts 
just  as  well  as  I  did."  Linton  was  not  cordial. 

"  No,  sir,  not  with  a  woodsman's  vocabulary,  though 
with  such  a  text  I  certainly  should  have  felt  the  true 
inspiration." 

"  You'll  have  to  claim  considerable  political  foresight, 
even  though  you  cast  doubt  on  your  eloquence,"  said 

244 


THE  RAM RODDERS  RAMPANT 

Linton,  rather  sourly.  "  I'll  confess  that  I  jumped 
wrong.  But  I  had  my  interests  to  protect.  Let  me  ask 
you — is  General  Waymouth  offended,  very  much  so, 
because  I  withdrew  my  support  this  morning?" 

"  General  Waymouth  has  not  made  any  comments 
on  the  matter  in  my  hearing." 

"  I  know  you  can  explain  to  him — 

Harlan  broke  in,  impatiently: 

"  I  am  not  cheeky  enough  to  advise  such  a  man  about 
picking  his  political  support.  I  beg  your  pardon,  Miss 
Presson!"  He  bowed.  He  turned  to  Linton.  "I  hope 
you  won't  open  this  subject  with  me  again,  Mr.  Linton. 
I  am  so  loyal  to  General  Waymouth  that  you  cannot  ex 
plain  satisfactorily  to  me  any  reasons  why  you  should 
have  deserted  him  to-day!  You  will  see  now  why  the 
topic  should  not  be  referred  to  again  between  us." 

Linton  bristled. 

"  If  you  take  such  an  unjust  view  of  it  as  that,  I  cer 
tainly  feel  that  the  matter  should  be  referred  to  again 
between  us — at  the  proper  time!" 

"I'd  advise  you  to  take  my  hint,"  retorted  Harlan. 

They  stared  at  each  other,  eye  to  eye,  both  plainly 
wishing  with  all  heartiness  that  no  feminine  presence 
hampered  them. 

The  girl  laughed. 

"  Coffee  and  pistols  for  two !  If  each  other's  company 
makes  you  so  impolite,  I'll  be  compelled  to  separate  you. 
Come,  Mr.  Harlan  Thornton,  baron  of  Fort  Canibas,  you 
have  volunteered  to  see  me  safely  home." 

He  offered  his  arm,  and  they  followed  Mrs.  Presson,  who 
had  already  started  for  the  carriage.  He  rode  with  them 
to  the  station,  flushed  and  silent,  and  the  girl  studied  his 
face  covertly  and  with  some  curiosity. 

On  the  train,  in  the  first  of  their  tete-a-tete,  she  sound 
ed  him  cautiously,  trying  to  discover  if  his  feelings  toward 
Linton  were  inspired  wholly  by  political  differences.  She 

245 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

seemed  to  suspect  there  was  something  more  behind  it, 
even  at  the  risk  of  flattering  herself.  But  she  had  de 
tected  certain  suggestive  symptoms  in  the  demeanor  of 
Harlan  at  the  breakfast- table  that  morning.  He  did  not 
betray  himself  under  her  deft  questioning.  But  he 
promptly  grew  amiable,  and  before  the  end  of  their  rail 
road  ride  that  day  she  had  proved  to  her  own  satisfaction 
that  her  ability  to  interest  young  men  had  not  been 
thrown  away  upon  him.  The  light  in  his  eyes  and  the 
zest  of  his  chatter  with  her  told  their  own  story.  He  left 
her  at  her  home  with  a  regret  that  he  did  not  hide  from 
her. 

And  yet,  when  he  was  at  last  in  his  room  at  the  hotel 
that  night,  he  wrote  to  Clare  Kavanagh  the  longest  letter 
of  all  those  he  had  written  to  her  since  he  left  Fort 
Canibas. 

It  might  have  been  because  he  had  so  much  to  write 
about. 

It  might  have  been  because  a  strange  little  feeling  of 
compunction  bothered  him. 

But  Harlan  did  not  have  the  courage  to  examine  his 
sentiments  too  closely.  Only,  after  he  had  sealed  the 
letter  and  inscribed  it,  he  lay  back  in  his  chair  a.while, 
and  then,  having  reflected  that  after  three  weeks  he  would 
no  longer  be  his  own  man,  he  decided  that  he'd  better 
run  up  to  Fort  Canibas  and  attend  to  his  business  in 
terests. 

And  he  departed  hastily  the  next  morning,  in  spite  of 
the  Duke's  puzzled  and  rather  indignant  protests  that 
business  wasn't  suffering  beyond  what  the  telephone  and 
mails  could  cure,  and  that  he  himself  would  go  home  the 
next  week  and  see  to  everything. 

There  are  some  men  who  are  strong  enough  to  run 
away  from  weakness.  Not  that  Harlan  Thornton  ad 
mitted  that  he  was  weak  in  the  presence  of  Madeleine 
Presson.  But  he  felt  a  sudden  hunger  for  the  big  hills, 

246 


THE    RAMRODDERS    RAMPANT 

the  wide  woods,  the  serene  silences.  He  wanted  to  get 
his  mental  footing  again.  He  had  been  swept  off  in  a 
flood  of  new  experiences.  Just  now  he  found  himself  in 
a  state  of  mind  that  he  did  not  understand. 

"I'll  go  back  and  let  the  old  woods  talk  to  me,"  he 
whispered  to  himself. 

Then  he  tore  up  the  letter  he  had  written  to  Clare 
Kavanagh. 

It  had  occurred  to  him  that  he  could  tell  it  to  her  so 
much  better. 

So  when  he  came  to  Fort  Canibas  in  the  evening  of  the 
second  day  he  mounted  his  horse  and  rode  across  the 
big  bridge. 

He  went  before  he  had  read  the  letters  piled  on  the 
table  in  the  gloomy  old  mess-hall.  And  he  brusquely 
told  the  waiting  Ben  Kyle  to  save  his  business  talk  until 
the  morning. 


CHAPTER  XX 


A      GIRLS      HEART 

E  walked  his  horse  when  he  reached  the 
farther  shore.  He  was  wondering  just 
what  he  was  to  say  to  Dennis  Kavanagh. 
They  had  not  parted  in  a  manner  that  in 
vited  further  intimacy.  From  twin  win 
dows  of  the  house  on  the  hill  lights  glowed 
redly,  as  though  they  were  Dennis  Kavanagh's  baleful 
little  eyes.  Fear  was  not  the  cause  of  the  young  man's 
hesitation.  But  he  dreaded  another  scene  in  the  presence 
of  the  girl.  Kavanagh  and  his  grandfather  had  brutally 
violated  an  innocent  friendship.  They  had  put  into  in 
sulting  words  what  neither  he  nor  Clare  had  dreamed 
of — he  hastily  assured  himself  that  they  were  not  lovers. 
More  than  ever  before  he  now  felt  infinite  tenderness 
toward  her — compassion,  sympathy — an  overpowering 
impulse  to  seek  her.  He  had  much  to  tell  her.  He 
could  not  think  of  any  one  in  all  the  world  who  would 
listen  as  she  would  listen.  The  red  eyes  glowering  out  of 
the  sumrrer  gloom  did  not  daunt  him;  they  suggested 
tyranny  and  insulting  suspicion,  and  he  pitied  her  the 
more.  He  rode  on  past  the  tall  cross  of  the  church-yard. 
A  voice  out  of  the  silence  startled  him.  A  white  figure 
stood  in  the  shadow  of  the  church  porch. 

"Come  here,  Big  Boy,"  she  said.     "I'm  not  a  ghost. 
I'm  only  Clare.     I've  been  waiting  for  you." 
He  left  his  horse,  and  hurried  to  her. 

248 


A    GIRL'S    HEART 

<:  Waiting  for  me  ?  I  did  not  write.  Have  you  second 
sight,  little  Clare?" 

"  No,  only  first  news,  This  isn't  one  of  the  big  cities 
where  the  crowds  rush  by  and  do  not  notice  each  other. 
It's  only  a  lonesome  little  place,  Harlan,  and  gossip 
travels  fast.  I  heard  you  were  home  five  minutes  after 
the  stage  was  in.  So  I  came  here  and  waited." 

He  took  both  her  hands  between  his  broad  palms, 
caressing  them. 

"And  you  knew  I'd  hurry  to  come  across  the  long 
bridge  ?  That  makes  me  happy,  Clare,  for  you  must  have 
been  thinking  about  me." 

"  I  haven't  many  things  to  do  these  days  except  think," 
she  returned,  wistfully.  "  You'll  understand  why  I  came 
down  here.  I'm  not  trying  to  hide  away  from  my 
father,  and  I  know  you  are  not  afraid  of  him.  But 
lectures  on  the  subject  of  not  doing  the  things  you  don't 
have  any  idea  of  doing  are  not  to  my  taste,  and  I  know 
they  don't  suit  you.  So  we'll  sit  here  in  peace  and  quiet 
ness,  and  you  shall  tell  me  all  about  it." 

He  turned  his  back  on  the  two  red  eyes  of  the  Kava- 
nagh  house,  and  sat  down  on  the  step  below  her,  and 
began  his  story,  eagerly,  volubly. 

Once  in  a  while  he  looked  up  at  her,  and  she  gave  wise 
little  nods  to  show  she  understood.  In  relating  the  early 
episodes  of  his  journey,  he  ventured  to  leave  out  details. 
But  she  insisted  that  he  give  them. 

"  I  want  to  know  about  the  world — how  they  all  look, 
and  how  they  speak,  and  what  they  do.  I've  been  lonely 
all  these  weeks.  I've  been  wondering  all  the  time  what 
you  were  doing.  Now  I  want  it  to  seem  that  you've 
come  to  take  me  with  you,  back  through  it  all.  I  want 
it  to  seem  just  as  though  I  were  travelling  along  with 
you — that  will  make  me  forget  how  lonely  I've  been, 
waiting  here  on  the  edge  of  the  big  woods." 

And  he  humored  her  whim,  for  he  had  always  under- 
249 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

stood  her  child's  ways.  The  woods  had  trained  him  to 
note  the  details  of  all  he  saw;  his  experiences  had  been 
fresh  and  stirring,  and  he  told  his  story  with  zest. 

Then  he  came  to  his  mention  of  Madeleine  Presson. 
"  Her  father  is  the  State  chairman — the  man  you  saw  at 
'The  Barracks/  I  was  at  their  house  a  few  times.  Her 
mother — " 

"But  about  her?    You  are  skipping  again,  Big  Boy." 

"There  is  not  much  about  her,"  he  said,  stammering  a 
bit.  "I  saw  her  here  and  there,  and  talked  with  her, 
that's  all." 

"  But  I'm  seeing  with  your  eyes  and  hearing  with 
your  ears  as  I  go  along  with  you,"  she  insisted.  "I 
want  to  know  how  other  girls  are  in  the  world  outside. 
I  have  been  waiting  to  have  some  one  tell  me.  You  saw 
her,  you  heard  her.  Begin,  Harlan:  her  looks,  her 
clothes,  her  manners,  what  she  said,  what  she  talks 
about.  I  have  only  you  to  ask." 

His  self-consciousness  left  him  after  he  began.  He 
drew  his  word-picture  as  best  he  could. 

"  That  makes  her  beautiful,"  she  said,  when  he  paused, 
searching  his  mind  for  some  word  of  description.  "  I 
think  I  can  see  her  with  your  eyes,  Big  Boy.  Tell  me 
what  she  knows;  and  how  does  she  talk?" 

In  the  dusk  he  could  not  see  the  expression  on  her  face. 
He  knew  that  she  listened  intently,  leaning  above  him. 
He  was  not  conscious  that  he  praised  Madeleine  Presson's 
gifts  of  mind  or  person.  But  as  he  had  found  her,  so 
he  portrayed  her  to  the  isolated  girl  of  the  north  country, 
describing  her  attainments,  her  culture,  her  breadth  of 
view,  her  grasp  of  the  questions  of  the  day,  her  ability  to 
understand  the  big  matters  in  which  men  were  interested. 

She  made  no  comment  as  he  talked.  She  did  not  in 
terrupt  him  when  he  had  finished  with  Madeleine  Presson 
and  went  on  to  relate  how  he  had  been  forced  into  the 
forefront  of  the  State's  political  situation, 

250 


A    GIRL'S    HEART 

"So,  then,  you  have  become  a  great  man,"  she  faltered. 
"  I  remember.  I  was  selfish.  I  did  not  want  you  to  go 
away." 

"No,  I  am  not  a  great  man,  little  Clare,"  he  protested, 
laughingly.  "  I'm  only  a  little  chap  that  a  great  man  is 
using.  And  you  were  not  selfish.  It  was  you  that  first 
put  the  thought  into  my  mind  that  I  ought  to  use  my 
opportunities.  That  night  at  the  end  of  the  bridge,  you 
know!  I  was  sullen  and  obstinate.  But  you  talked  to 
me  like  a  wise  little  woman.  All  the  time  I  was  with  my 
grandfather  later  that  evening,  trying  to  be  angry  with 
him,  I  kept  remembering  your  advice." 

"I  lied  to  you!"  she  cried,  so  passionately  that  he 
leaped  to  his  feet  and  stared  down  on  her.  "  I  said  it. 
I  remember.  But  I  lied.  I  was  punishing  myself  be 
cause  I  had  been  selfish  about  you.  But  I  didn't  be 
lieve  what  I  was  saying — not  deep  in  my  heart.  I  want 
ed  you  to  say  you  wouldn't  go— but  I  didn't  want  you 
to  look  back  ever  and  blame  me  for  my  selfishness.  You 
see  now  how  wicked  and  wrong  and  weak  I  am.  I  didn't 
want  the  world  to  take  you  away  from — from  us  up  here : 
from  the  woods  and  the  plain  folks.  You'll  hate  me 
now.  But  I  have  to  be  truthful  with  you!"  Her  voice 
broke. 

"The  world  has  not  won  me  away  from  my  friends, 
dear.  You  must  know  me  too  well  for  that  suspicion 
to  shame  me." 

She  crouched  on  the  step  before  him.  Her  hands, 
fingers  interlaced,  gripped  each  other  hard  to  quiet  their 
trembling.  In  her  girlish  frailness,  as  she  bent  above 
her  clasped  hands,  huddled  there  in  the  black  shadow 
of  the  porch,  she  seemed  pitifully  little  and  helpless  and 
forsaken.  The  woe  in  her  tones  thrilled  him.  She  was 
trying  hard  to  control  her  voice. 

"You  see,  Harlan,  I  can  look  ahead  and  understand 
how  it  will  be.  A  woman  does  understand  such  things. 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

That's  the  awful  thing  about  being  a  woman — and  look 
ing  ahead  and  knowing  how  it  must  be  before  it  ever 
happens!" 

"Before  what  happens,  Clare?  I'm  trying  hard  to 
understand  you." 

He  leaned  forward,  and  could  see  her  eyes.  He  had 
seen  that  look  in  the  eyes  of  a  stricken  doe. 

"The  world  is  all  outside  of  this  place,  Harlan.  You 
know  we  have  always  spoken  of  all  other  places  than  this 
as  'outside.'  You  have  stepped  through  the  great  door. 
Now  you  see.  You  can't  help  seeing.  It's  all  outspread 
before  you.  No  one  can  blame  you  for  not  looking  back 
here  into  the  shadows.  The  great  light  is  all  ahead.  I 
am — I  ought  not  to  speak  about  myself.  I  have  no  right 
to.  But  you'll  forgive  me.  I  didn't  have  any  one  to  tell 
me!  I  didn't  have  any  mother  to  advise  me.  I  have 
played  through  all  the  long  days,  I  don't  know  any 
thing.  Other  girls — 

"Clare!  God  save  you,  little  Clare — don't — don't!" 
he  pleaded. 

"You  have  been  away  only  a  few  days,  and  yet  you 
have  found  out  the  difference.  You  told  me  about  her. 
She  is  beautiful,  and  she  is  wise.  She  has  not  wasted  the 
long  days.  She  can  help  you  with  knowledge.  She  can — 

He  put  out  his  arms  and  tried  to  take  her,  cursing  him 
self  for  his  thoughtless  cruelty.  Infinite  pity  and  some 
thing  else — fervent,  hungry  desire  to  clasp  her  over 
mastered  all  the  prudence  of  the  past.  But  she  eluded 
him.  She  sprang  away.  She  retreated  to  the  upper 
step  of  the  church  porch,  and  he  paused,  gazing  up  at 
her. 

"  Oh,  Blessed  Virgin,  put  your  fingers  on  my  lips!"  she 
gasped.  "Why  did  I  say  it?" 

"Listen  to  me,  Clare,"  he  urged,  holding  his  arms  to 
her.  "  I  know  now  that  I've  been  waiting  for  you.  I 
thought  it  was  friendship,  but  now  I — 

252 


A    GIRL'S    HEART 

She  cried  out  so  loudly,  so  bitterly,  that  he  stopped. 

"  If  you  say  it — if  you  say  it  now,  Harlan,  it  will  shame 
me  so  that  I  can  never  lift  my  eyes  to  yours  again.  I 
realize  what  I  have  said.  It  is  I  that  have  put  the 
thoughts  into  your  mind — almost  the  words  in  your 
mouth.  Don't  speak  to  me  now.  Oh,  you  can  see  how 
little  I  know — what  a  fool  I  am,  forward,  shameless, 
ignorant  about  all  that  a  girl  should  know!  Do  not  come 
near  me — not  now!"  He  had  started  to  come  up  the 
steps — he  was  crying  out  to  her.  "Oh,  Harlan,  don't 
you  understand?  Don't  you  see  that  I  can't  listen  to 
you  now?  I  have  driven  you  to  say  something  to  save 
my  pride.  I  say  I  have!  You  are  good  and  honest,  and 
you  pity  me — and  my  folly  needs  your  pity.  But  if  you 
should  tell  me  now  that  you  love  me,  I'd  die  of  shame — 
I'd  distrust  that  love!  I  couldn't  help  it — and  I've 
brought  it  all  on  myself.  Oh,  my  God,  why  have  I 
grown  up  a  fool — why  have  I  wasted  the  long  days?" 

She  ran  down  past  him.  He  did  not  try  to  stay  her. 
He  understood  women  not  at  all.  He  obeyed  her  cry 
to  be  silent — to  keep  away  from  her. 

She  turned  to  him  when  she  reached  the  ground. 

"  I  haven't  even  known  enough  to  understand  how  it 
stands  bet\veen  us.  Between  us!"  There  was  a  wail 
in  her  voice.  She  sobbed  the  rest  rather  than  spoke  it: 
"  That  river  out  there  is  between  us !  I  don't  even  belong 
to  your  country!" 

She  pointed  at  the  great  cross  of  the  church-yard.  It 
stood  outlined  in  the  starlight. 

"Religion  stands  between  us!  My  father  and  your 
grandfather  are  between  us!" 

She  came  back  two  steps,  her  face  tear- wet,  her  feat 
ures  quivering  with  grief. 

"  But  there's  something  else  between  us,  Harlan,  black 
er  and  deeper  than  all  the  rest.  Don't  try  to  cross  it  to 
come  to  me.  You  will  sink  in  it.  Fools  for  wives  have 

253 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

spoiled  too  many  men  in  this  world.  I  understand  now! 
Your  grandfather  knew."  She  raised  her  eyes,  and 
crossed  herself  reverently.  "  Mother  Mary,  help  me  in 
this,  my  temptation!" 

She  turned,  and  ran  away,  sobbing. 

Harlan  hurried  a  few  steps  after  her,  crying  appeals. 
But  he  did  not  persist.  Her  passionate  protests  had 
come  from  her  heart,  he  knew.  He  did  not  dare  to  force 
himself  on  her  when  she  was  in  that  mood. 

He  sat  down  again  on  the  church  steps.  He  remained 
there  in  deep  thought  until  the  red  eyes  in  Dennis  Kava- 
nagh's  house  blinked  out.  He  did  not  find  it  easy  to 
understand  himself,  exactly.  His  feelings  had  been  play 
ed  upon  too  powerfully  to  permit  calm  consideration. 
He  felt  confident  in  his  affection  for  her.  But  her  youth 
and  the  obstacles  he  understood  so  well  put  marriage  so 
out  of  immediate  consideration  that  he  merely  grieved 
rather  than  made  definite  plans  for  their  future.  With 
moist  eyes  he  looked  up  at  the  dark  house  on  the  hill  and 
pledged  loyalty  to  the  child-woman,  knowing  that  he 
loved  her.  But  that  the  love  was  the  love  that  mates 
man  and  woman  for  the  struggles,  the  prizes,  the  woes, 
and  the  contentment  of  life  he  was  not  sure — for  he  still 
looked  on  Clare  Kavanagh  as  more  child  than  woman. 

Marriage  seemed  yet  a  long  way  ahead  of  him.  He 
rode  slowly  back  to  "The  Barracks."  His  problem 
seemed  to  be  riding  double  with  him.  The  problem,  one 
might  say,  was  in  the  form  of  a  maid  on  a  pillion.  But 
he  did  not  look  behind  to  see  whether  the  maid  bore  the 
features  of  Clare  Kavanagh  or  Madeleine  Presson.  At 
that  moment  he  was  sure  that  only  Clare's  image  rode 
with  him.  But  in  thinking  of  her  he  understood  his 
limitations.  For,  woodsman  and  unversed  in  the  ways 
of  women,  he  had  not  arrived  at  that  point  in  life  where 
he  could  analyze  even  a  boy's  love,  much  less  a  man's 
passion. 

254 


A    GIRL'S    HEART 

The  next  morning  he  left  Fort  Canibas  with  big  Ben 
Kyle,  to  make  a  tour  of  the  Thornton  camps.  It  was  a 
trip  that  took  in  the  cruising  of  a  township  for  standing 
timber  on  short  rations  and  in  the  height  of  the  black- 
fly  season,  an  experience  not  conducive  to  reflections  on 
love  and  matrimony. 

But  when  he  returned  to  Fort  Canibas,  on  the  eve  of 
his  departure  to  take  up  his  duties  as  General  Way- 
mouth's  chief  of  staff,  he  saddled  his  horse  and  rode 
across  the  long  bridge. 

This  time  there  was  no  white  figure  on  the  church 
porch  and  no  wistful  voice  to  call  after  him.  He  kept 
on  up  the  hill.  He  was  not  thinking  about  what  Dennis 
Kavanagh  might  say  to  him.  He  had  resolved  to  ask 
Clare  manfully  if  she  would  continue  to  trust  him  for  a 
while  until  both  could  be  certain  that  their  boy  and  girl 
love  signified  to  them  the  love  that  life  needed  for  its 
bounty  and  its  blessing.  That  seemed  the  honest  way. 
It  seemed  the  only  way,  as  matters  lay  between  them 
and  their  families. 

Dennis  Kavanagh  was  seated  on  his  veranda,  smoking 
his  short  pipe  and  inhaling  the  freshness  of  the  shower- 
cooled  summer  air  along  with  the  aroma  of  his  to 
bacco. 

"I  would  like  to  see  your  daughter,  Mr.  Kavanagh," 
announced  the  young  man,  boldly.  "And  I  have  not 
come  sneaking  by  the  back  way.  It  will  be  a  good  while 
before  I  can  see  her  again." 

"That  it  will,"  responded  Mr.  Kavanagh,  dryly,  "and 
it  will  be  a  good  long  while  before  ye '11  see  her  now — 
that  may  be  mixed,  but  I  reckon  ye'll  get  the  drift  of  it !" 

"  It  will  be  better  for  all  our  interests  if  I  have  a  few 
words  with  her,"  persisted  the  young  man,  trying  to  keep 
his  temper. 

"  Will  ye  talk  to  her  through  the  air  or  over  the  tele 
phone?"  inquired  the  father,  sarcastically.  "She  is  not 

255 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

here,  she  is  not  near  here,  and  if  ye  wait  for  her  to  come 
back  ye'll  best  arrange  to  have  your  meals  brought." 

He  did  not  pause  for  Harlan  to  ask  any  more  questions. 
He  came  down  from  the  porch  on  his  stubby  legs  and 
handed  up  an  envelope.  The  flap  of  the  envelope  had 
been  opened. 

"She  left  this,"  he  said;  "and  having  opened  it  and 
seen  that  it  held  nothing  but  what  ye  might  profitably 
know,  Thornton's  grandson,  I  here  give  it  into  your  hand, 
and  ye  needn't  thank  me." 

Harlan,  wondering,  apprehensive,  fearing  something 
untoward,  took  out  the  single  sheet  of  paper.  He 
read: 

"BiG  BOY, — Go  on  and  let  the  world  make  you  a  great  man. 
I'm  groping.  Perhaps  I'll  see  my  way  some  day  and  can  fol 
low.  But  just  as  there's  a  cure  for  ignorance,  so  there's  a  cure 
for  hearts,  maybe.  Your  friend,  CLARE." 

Harlan  looked  over  the  edge  of  the  paper  into  the 
twinkling  little  eyes  of  the  father.  Mr.  Kavanagh  seem 
ed  to  be  getting  much  satisfaction  from  the  expression 
on  his  victim's  face. 

"Can't  you  tell  me  what  this  means,  Mr.  Kavanagh? 
I  beg  of  you  humbly,  and  in  all  sincerity." 

"The  Kavanaghs  are  never  backward  in  politeness, 
Mr.  Harlan  Thornton.  It  means  that  my  girl  is  done 
playing  child  and  riding  cockhorse.  She's  off  to  learn 
to  be  the  finest  and  knowingest  lady  in  all  the  land — she's 
off  because  she  wanted  to  go,  and  she's  got  all  of  Dennis 
Kavanagh's  fat  wallet  behind  her!"  He  slapped  his 
breast-pocket. 

"Off  where?" 

"Where  they  know  things  and  teach  things  better 
than  they  do  over  in  your  Yankeeland  of  airs  and  frills. 
And  now  good-day  to  ye!" 

He  climbed  the  porch  steps,  and  relighted  his  pipe, 
256 


A    GIRL'S    HEART 

gazing  with  much  relish  past  the  flame  of  the  match, 
studying  Harlan's  dismay. 

The  young  man  suddenly  came  to  himself,  struck  his 
horse,  and  galloped  wildly  away. 

The  next  morning  he  departed  to  offer  political  hand 
and  sword  in  the  cause  of  General  Waymouth. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

STARTING    A   MULE    TEAM 

OME  men  are  extremely  good  and  loyal 
politicians  so  long  as  the  machine  runs 
smoothly,  and  they  are  not  called  upon  to 
sacrifice  their  interests  and  their  opinions. 
Luke  Presson  and  his  associates  on  the 
State  Committee  were  of  that  sort.  But 
Thelismer  Thornton  was  a  better  politician  than  they. 

The  Duke  had  saved  the  chairman  and  his  committee- 
men  from  themselves  at  that  critical  moment  in  the  little 
room  off  the  convention  stage,  when  they  were  ready 
to  invite  ruin  by  defying  General  Waymouth.  It  had 
been  as  bitter  for  Thornton  as  it  had  been  for  the  others. 
Beyond  question,  he  would  have  gone  down  fighting 
were  the  question  a  private  or  a  personal  one.  But 
when  the  interests  of  his  party  were  at  stake  he  knew 
how  to  compromise,  taking  what  he  could  get  instead  of 
what  he  had  determined  to  get.  After  the  convention 
he  gave  fatherly  advice  to  the  committee,  and  then 
Presson  went  up  to  Burnside  village  with  the  olive-branch. 
But  while  he  extended  that  in  one  hand,  he  held  out  his 
little  political  porringer  in  the  other.  He  couldn't  help 
doing  it.  The  chairman  was  no  altruist  in  politics.  He 
didn't  propose  to  cultivate  the  spirit. 

He  put  it  plainly  to  General  Waymouth — that  while 
he  sympathized  to  some  extent  with  the  latter 's  desires 
for  general  reform,  there  were  certain  interests  that 
propped  the  party  and  must  be  handled  with  discretion 

258 


STARTING    A    MULE    TEAM 

in  the  clean-up.  He  had  already  drawn  some  consola 
tion  from  the  fact  that  General  Waymouth  had  modified 
in  a  measure  the  planks  that  he  submitted  for  the  party 
platform.  He  followed  up  this  as  a  step  that  hinted  a 
general  compromise,  and  at  last  frankly  presented  his 
requests.  He  asked  that  tax  reform  be  smoothed  over, 
that  the  corporations  be  allowed  an  opportunity  to 
"turn  around,"  and  finally  that  the  prohibitory  law 
should  be  let  alone.  He  argued  warmly  that  General 
Waymouth  could  not  be  criticised  by  either  side  if  he 
left  the  law  as  he  found  it.  The  radicals  were  satisfied 
with  the  various  enactments  as  they  stood,  and  if  there 
were  infractions  it  became  a  matter  of  the  police  and 
sheriffs,  and  the  Governor  could  not  be  held  accountable. 
And  he  laid  stress  on  the  fact  that  the  people  did  not 
want  a  Governor  to  tarnish  the  dignity  of  his  office  by 
fighting  bar-rooms. 

But  Chairman  Presson  found  an  inflexible  old  man  who 
listened  to  all  he  said,  and  at  the  end  declared  his  plat 
form  broadly  and  without  details.  Those  details  of 
proposed  activity  he  kept  to  himself.  The  platform  was : 
That  it  behooved  all  men  in  the  State  to  be  prompt  and 
honest  in  obeying  the  law.  That  the  man  who  did  not 
obey  the  law  would  find  himself  in  trouble.  Moreover, 
position,  personality,  or  purse  could  purchase  no  ex 
ceptions. 

That  was  a  platform  which  Mr.  Presson  could  not 
attack,  of  course. 

He  listened  to  it  sullenly,  however.  He  was  angry 
because  common  decency  prevented  him  from  expressing 
his  opinion.  He  had  heard  other  candidates  pompously 
declare  the  same  thing,  but  he  had  not  been  worried  by 
fear  that  saints  had  come  on  earth. 

This  calm  old  man  from  whose  fibre  of  ambition  the 
years  had  burned  out  selfishness,  greed,  graft,  and  chi 
canery  was  a  different  proposition.  His  words  sounded 
18  259 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

as  though  he  meant  what  he  said.  And  when  he  asked 
the  chairman  if  he  had  any  objection  to  offer  to  a  sys 
tem  of  administration  that  carried  out  exactly  what 
the  party  had  put  in  its  pledges  to  the  people,  Presson 
glowered  at  him  with  hatred  in  his  soul  and  malice 
twinkling  in  his  eyes,  and  could  find  no  language  that 
would  not  brand  him  as  a  conspirator  against  the  honor 
of  his  State. 

But  he  went  back  to  headquarters  swearing  and 
sulking. 

In  this  spirit  did  candidate  and  managers  face  the 
campaign. 

It  is  not  easy  to  hide  family  squabbles  of  that  magni 
tude.  The  men  concerned  in  the  principal  secret  of  the 
State  Convention  kept  their  mouths  shut  for  the  sake  of 
self-preservation.  But  unquiet  suspicion  was  abroad. 
The  Democrats  nosed,  figured,  guessed,  and  acted  with 
more  duplicity  than  had  characterized  their  usual  cam 
paigns  against  the  dominant  party.  Their  leaders  gave 
their  party  a  platform  that  invited  every  one  to  get 
aboard.  Every  question  was  straddled.  It  was  a 
document  of  craft  expressed  in  terms  of  apparent  candor. 
It  elevated  a  demagogue  as  candidate  for  Governor,  and 
promised  every  reform  on  the  calendar.  These  were  the 
rash  pledges  of  the  minority,  more  reckless  than  usual. 

An  united  dominant  party  could  have  met  the  issues 
boldly  and  frankly  without  fear  as  to  results. 

But  General  Waymouth  promptly  discovered  that  he 
had  a  loyal  army  with  rebel  officers.  He  was  soldier 
enough  to  understand  the  peril.  He  had  more  faith  in 
the  inherent,  unorganized  honesty  of  "The  People"  than 
Thelismer  Thornton  had.  But,  with  just  as  shrewd 
political  knowledge  as  the  Duke,  he  held  with  him  that 
the  "The  People"  amount  to  mighty  little  as  a  force  in 
politics  unless  well  and  loyally  officered. 

A  campaign  will  not  run  itself.  Left  to  run  itself,  the 

260 


issues  are  not  brought  out  to  stir  up  the  voting  spirit. 
"The  People"  have  to  be  poked  into  the  fighting  mood 
—their  ears  have  to  be  scruffed — they  need  speakers, 
literature,  marshals,  inciters — hurrah  of  partisanship. 
It  was  the  off  year  for  the  national  campaign.  No 
money  came  into  the  State  from  the  Big  Fellows. 

The  State  Committee  was  looked  to  by  the  county 
and  town  committees  to  start  the  ball  rolling  and 
guarantee  the  purse  to  push  it.  "The  People"  were,  as 
usual,  too  busy  getting  daily  bread  to  be  spontaneous 
in  political  movements. 

General  Waymouth  sat  in  the  old  brick  house  in  Burn- 
side  village,  and  did  the  best  he  could  during  the  long 
hot  days  of  July  and  the  sultry  first  fortnight  of  August. 
Harlan  Thornton  worked  with  him.  The  library  re 
sounded  with  the  click  of  typewriters,  and  men  came  and 
men  went.  But  there  was  no  up-and-moving  spirit  to 
the  campaign. 

An  old  man  writing  letters — even  such  an  old  man  as 
General  Varden  Waymouth  was  in  the  estimation  of  his 
State — is  a  small  voice  in  the  wilderness  of  politics. 

The  Democrats  had  vociferous  orators.  Those  orators 
had  for  text  State  extravagance,  unjust  taxation,  and  all 
the  other  charges  "the  unders"  may  bring  against  the 
reigning  rulers.  They  were  not  answered  on  the  stump. 
Even  the  Republican  newspapers  were  listless  and  half 
hearted. 

At  last  came  Thelismer  Thornton.  It  was  one  after 
noon  in  middle  August,  barely  three  weeks  before  the 
day  of  the  State  election  in  September.  It  was  his  first 
visit  to  the  brick  house  in  Burnside.  He  had  been  so 
journing  at  the  State  capitol.  Men  had  told  Harlan, 
from  time  to  time,  that  he  was  spending  his  days  sitting 
on  the  broad  veranda  of  Luke  Presson's  hotel,  apparently 
enjoying  the  summer  with  the  same  leisurely  ease  that 
the  State  chairman  was  displaying.  Men  were  some- 

261 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

times  inquisitive  when  they  mentioned  this  matter  to 
Harlan.  They  did  not  presume  to  ask  questions  of 
the  General.  But  the  young  man  had  nothing  to  say. 
It  must  be  confessed  that  he  did  not  know  anything 
about  it. 

He  obeyed  the  instructions  the  General  gave  him  and 
toiled  as  best  he  knew,  but  that  the  main  campaign  was 
hanging  fire  he  did  not  realize.  For  the  General,  who 
knew  politics,  did  not  complain  to  him.  The  veteran 
was  a  little  whiter,  a  bit  more  dignified,  and  directed  the 
movements  of  his  modest  force  of  office  assistants  with 
a  curtness  he  had  not  shown  at  first;  but  no  other  sign 
betrayed  that  he  knew  his  State  Committee  had  "lain 
down  on  him." 

The  Duke  sauntered  up  the  walk,  whipping  off  his 
hat  and  swinging  it  in  his  hand  as  soon  as  he  arrived 
under  the  trees  of  the  old  garden.  He  came  into  the 
house  without  knocking.  The  front  door  was  swung 
inward,  and  only  a  screen  door,  on  the  latch,  closed  the 
portal. 

"  I'm  making  myself  at  home  as  usual,  Yard,"  he  said, 
walking  to  the  General  and  stroking  his  shoulder  as 
the  veteran  leaned  over  his  table  above  his  figures. 
"  I've  been  waiting  for  an  invitation  to  come  up  here. 
But  I  didn't  dare  to  wait  any  longer.  It's  getting  too 
near  election." 

General  Waymouth  looked  up  at  his  old  friend,  study 
ing  his  face.  He  found  only  the  bland  cordiality  of  the 
ancient  days. 

"I've  been  waiting,  myself,  Thelismer,"  he  returned. 
"  And  I'll  add  that  I  don't  intend  to  wait  much  longer. 
I'm  not  referring  to  you,  now.  I  refer  to  Presson  and 
his  gang.  I  presume  you  are  still  close  to  them.  Will 
you  inform  them  that  I  don't  intend  to  wait  much 
longer?" 

Thornton  did  not  lose  his  smile.  He  sat  down.  He 

262 


STARTING    A    MULE    TEAM 

nodded  across  the  room  to  Harlan  with  as  much  non 
chalance  as  though  he  had  been  seeing  him  every  day. 

"  I  would  have  run  in  before  this,  Varden,  but  some 
how  I  got  the  impression  from  you  and  the  boy  that  you 
were  fully  capable  of  operating  things  yourself.  But 
with  election  only  three  weeks  off  I'm  getting  ready  to 
change  my  mind.  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  that 
steer  team — no,  mule  team — that's  better?" 

"  Meaning?" 

"  Meaning  Luke  Presson  and  the  members  of  the 
State  Committee.  I'm  a  politician,  Varden.  I'm  out 
of  a  job  just  now.  Both  crowds  of  you  seem  to  think 
you  can  get  along  all  right  without  me.  Probably  you 
can.  Luke  knows  he  can,  so  he  says.  He  doesn't  seem 
to  like  my  management  or  my  advice — not  after  that 
convention!  But  I  can't  help  being  a  politician.  I  can't 
sit  on  that  hotel  piazza  any  longer  and  see  this  mess 
scorch.  I'm  too  good  a  cook  to  stand  it."  He  hitched 
forward  in  his  chair  and  spoke  low.  "Varden,  it  sounds 
like  the  devil  making  a  presentation  copy  of  the  Ten 
Commandments  on  asbestos,  but  I  can't  help  that!  I'm 
giving  it  to  you  straight.  We've  got  body-snatchers  for 
a  State  Committee.  They'd  rather  see  the  Democrat 
the  next  Governor  than  you.  That's  how  mad  they  are. 
That's  how  sure  they  are  that  you  propose  to  put  their 
noses  to  the  grindstone.  That's  how  rotten  politics  is 
in  this  State.  The  Democrat  won't  give  us  reform. 
They  know  it.  They'd  rather  see  the  State  officers  go 
by  the  board  than  have  the  kind  of  reform  you've 
promised  'em.  They  can  get  rid  of  their  Democrat  after 
two  years.  Your  reform  may  hang  on  a  good  while, 
once  get  the  laws  chained.  Now  what  are  you  going  to 
do?" 

"I  know  exactly  what  I'm  going  to  do." 

"Yes;  but,  grinning  Jehosaphat,  how  much  time  have 
you  got  to  do  it  in  ?  Three  weeks  to  election  now!" 

263 


THE    RAM RODDERS 

"This  campaign,  Thelismer,  will  be  started,  as  it  ought 
to  be  started,  within  the  next  twenty-four  hours.  As  to 
how  it  will  be  started  I'll  have  you  present  as  a  witness, 
if  you'll  accept  an  invitation." 

The  Duke  was  obliged  to  be  contented  with  only  that 
much  assurance  and  information. 

"There's  a  train  back  to  the  State  capital  in  half  an 
hour,  Thelismer,"  the  General  stated.  "I'll  be  pleased 
to  have  you  go  along  with  Harlan  and  myself.  If  you'll 
excuse  me  now,  I'll  finish  signing  these  letters." 

The  old  man  was  not  disturbed  by  this  abruptness. 
He  rose. 

"I  reckon  you  know  how  to  play  the  game,  Yard," 
he  said.  "  I'm  perfectly  satisfied,  now  that  I  know  you 
are  playing  it.  But  you'll  excuse  me  for  being  a  little 
uneasy  about  your  starting  in." 

He  did  not  interrupt  Harlan,  who  was  busy  at  his 
desk.  He  picked  up  one  of  the  newspapers  that  covered 
the  General's  table,  and  marched  out  into  the  garden. 

He  joined  them  when  they  came  out.  The  General's 
old-fashioned  carryall  conveyed  them  to  the  railroad 
station.  They  made  the  journey  to  the  capital  without 
a  word  of  reference  to  the  purpose  of  their  trip.  Un 
obtrusively  chatting  about  the  old  times,  the  Duke  and 
his  friend  made  their  way  back  to  their  old  footing.  It 
was  mutual  forbearance  and  forgiveness,  for  they  were 
old  enough  to  be  philosophers,  and  especially  did  they 
understand  the  philosophy  of  politics. 

Chairman  Presson  was  in  his  office  at  his  hotel  when 
they  entered.  He  came  out  to  greet  General  Way- 
mouth,  suave  but  circumspect,  and  furtively  studied 
word  and  aspect  of  his  visitor. 

"  Mr.  Presson,"  said  the  General,  breaking  in  upon  the 
chairman's  vague  gossip  regarding  the  political  situation, 
"  this  is  short  notice,  but  I  presume  you  can  reach  a  few 
members  of  the  State  Committee  by  telephone.  I  wish 

264 


STARTING    A    MULE    TEAM 

to  meet  them  and  you  at  my  rooms  in  the  hotel  at  nine 
this  evening.  It  is  important." 

They  came.  There  were  half  a  dozen  of  them — men 
who  hurried  in  from  such  near  points  as  the  chairman 
could  reach ;  and  at  the  appointed  hour  Presson  ushered 
them  into  the  General's  room.  Harlan  Thornton  was 
waiting  there  with  his  chief.  The  Duke  arrived  in  a  few 
moments,  alone.  He  sat  down  at  one  side  of  the  room, 
bearing  himself  with  an  air  of  judicial  impartiality.  The 
chairman  scowled  at  him.  Judged  by  recent  experience, 
Thelismer  Thornton  was  a  questionable  quantity  in  a 
conference  between  the  machine  and  General  Waymouth. 

The  committeemen  took  their  cue  from  the  chairman. 
They  were  sullen.  They  bristled  with  an  obstinacy  that 
betrayed  itself  in  advance. 

The  General  got  down  to  business  promptly.  It  was 
not  a  gathering  that  invited  any  preamble  of  cheerful 
chat.  He  understood  perfectly  that  the  men  were  there 
only  because  they  did  not  dare  to  stay  away. 

"  Chairman  Presson,  it  is  now  close  upon  the  election. 
I  have  canvassed  the  State  as  best  I  could  through  the 
mails.  With  Mr.  Harlan  Thornton's  assistance  and 
through  my  friends  in  various  towns,  I  have  secured  a 
pretty  complete  list  of  doubtful  voters.  I  will  say  in 
passing  that  I  have  tried  to  enlist  the  help  of  your  town 
committeemen,  but  they  seem  to  be  asleep.  I  have 
thanked  God  daily  that  I  have  personal  friends  willing 
to  help  me.  I  have  the  names  at  last.  I  have  accom 
plished  alone  the  work  that  is  usually  attended  to  by  the 
State  Committee." 

Presson  started  to  say  something,  but  the  General 
stopped  him. 

"  One  moment,  Mr.  Chairman.  Let  me  tell  you  what 
7  have  done.  One  of  us  at  a  time !  When  I've  told  you 
what  I've  done,  you  can  tell  me  what  you've  attended  to. 
I  have  those  names,  I  have  pledges  of  support,  I  have 

265 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

plans  for  getting  out  the  vote.  But  I  have  no  literature 
for  distribution  to  those  doubtful  voters,  I  have  no 
speakers  assigned  by  the  State  Committee  to  help  the 
men  who  are  trying  to  get  the  vote  out,  I  have  no  fund 
provided  for  the  usual  expenses.  Now  I  will  listen  to 
you,  Mr.  Chairman.  Will  you  tell  me  what  you  have 
done?" 

"It's  an  off  year,  General  Waymouth,"  said  Presson. 
"  I  asked  the  Congressional  Committee  for  money,  but  I 
couldn't  interest  'em.  And  I'll  tell  you  frankly  that  the 
regular  sources  in  this  State  are  dry.  There  isn't  the 
usual  feeling.  You're  a  good  politician.  Perhaps  you 
know  why  it's  so." 

"  You  haven't  answered  my  question,  sir.  I  asked 
you  what  your  State  Committee  has  done." 

"  What  is  there  we  can  do  when  every  interest  in  this 
State  sits  back  on  its  wallet  like  a  hen  squatting  on  the 
roost,  and  won't  stand  up  and  let  go  until  some  assur 
ances  are  given  out?  It  isn't  my  fault!  I  went  to  you! 
I  laid  the  case  down!  You  didn't  give  me  anything  to 
carry  back  to  'em." 

"  I'm  here  to  talk  business,  Mr.  Chairman.  You  are 
too  vague." 

"Well,  I'll  talk  business,  too."  Presson  snapped  out 
of  his  chair.  He  stood  up  and  wagged  his  finger.  He 
was  too  angry  to  choose  words  or  gloss  brutal  facts. 

"  You  want  to  be  Governor,  don't  you  ?  You're  asking 
men  to  support  you  and  back  you  with  money  ?  That's 
what  it  amounts  to.  Campaign  funds  don't  come  down 
like  manna — there's  nothing  heavenly  about  'em — and 
you  know  it  as  well  as  I  do,  General.  You've  scared 
Senator  Pownal's  crowd  with  that  anti-water-power- 
trust  talk;  they've  got  money  to  put  into  the  legislature, 
but  none  for  you.  The  corporations  won't  do  anything; 
your  tax  commission  talk  has  given  them  cold  feet  as 
far's  you're  concerned.  Even  the  officeholders  are  sore; 

266 


STARTING    A    MULE    TEAM 

you've  been  talking  about  abolishing  fees,  and  if  that's 
the  case  they'd  just  as  soon  give  up  the  offices.  And 
where's  your  party,  then?  You  say  you're  going  to 
enforce  the  prohibitory  law!  I  can  get  a  little  money 
out  of  the  express  companies,  the  jobbers  in  gallon  lots, 
and  the  fellows  that  get  the  promise  of  the  State  liquor 
agency  contracts.  But  the  big  wholesalers,  the  liquor 
men's  associations,  the  retailers — the  whole  bunch  that's 
got  the  real  money  and  is  willing  to  spend  it  haven't  a 
cent  for  you — they'll  even  back  the  Democrat  against 
you!  You  wanted  business  talk.  There  it  is." 

He  strode  up  and  down  the  centre  of  the  room  in 
agitation,  and  then  sat  down. 

The  other  committeemen  sighed  with  relief.  Their 
chairman  had  said  what  they  wanted  to  say,  said  it 
bluntly  and  boldly,  and  they  were  glad  it  was  over. 

"That  is,"  drawled  Thelismer  Thornton,  "the  State 
Committee  says,  as  the  fork  says  to  the  cook:  '  I'm  will 
ing  to  be  used  for  all  reasonable  purposes,  but  not  to 
pick  your  teeth  with  or  pull  out  carpet  tacks.'" 

The  pleasantry  did  not  relieve  the  gloom. 

"The  State  Committee  can't  do  anything  without 
money,  General  Waymouth,"  added  the  chairman, 
getting  bolder  as  he  allowed  his  rancor  full  play.  "  You've 
fixed  it  so  that  we  can't  get  the  money." 

"  Then  the  State  Committee  would  be  able  to  go  ahead 
and  do  what  it  ought  to  do  if  I  should  assure  Senator 
Pownal  that  he  and  his  crowd  may  help  themselves  to 
the  water-powers  of  this  State — if  I  let  the  rumsellers  sell 
and  the  office-holders  filch?  It's  on  those  terms,  is  it, 
that  I'm  to  get  the  help  of  the  men  the  Republican  party 
has  selected  as  its  executives?" 

"  That  isn't  a  square  way  to  put  it,"  objected  Mr. 
Presson,  with  heat.  "  I  simply  say  it  was  all  right  to 
open  this  campaign  with  prayer,  as  we  did  at  the  State 
Convention,  but  as  to  carrying  it  through  on  the  plane 

267 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

of  a  revival  meeting,  that's  a  different  proposition! 
You've  asked  for  business  talk,  General.  I've  given  you 
straight  business.  You're  asking  something  from  some 
one  else,  just  now.  In  politics  it's  nothing  for  nothing, 
and  d — n — d  little  for  a  dollar!  You  know  it  just  as 
well  as  I  do.  Now  suppose  we  have  some  business 
talk  from  you!"  There  was  a  sneer  in  the  last  sen 
tence. 

General  Waymouth  swung  one  thin  leg  over  the  knee 
of  the  other.  He  leaned  back  in  his  chair.  His  elbow 
rested  on  the  chair-arm,  his  fingers  were  set,  tips  on  his 
chin,  and  over  them  he  surveyed  his  listeners  with  calm 
ness.  He  did  not  raise  his  voice.  It  was  his  mild  man 
ner  that  made  what  he  said  sound  so  balefully  savage. 
Bluster  would  have  weakened  it. 

"  The  legitimate  expenses  of  a  campaign  are  con 
siderable,  even  when  the  party  organization,  from  you, 
Mr.  Presson,  down  to  the  humblest  town  committeeman, 
does  full  duty  in  time  and  effort.  But  if  one  has  to  buy 
it  all,  it  needs  a  deep  purse.  From  what  you  say,  it  is 
plain  to  me  that  I  am  now  left  to  run  my  own  campaign. 
I  tell  you  very  frankly,  gentlemen,  my  means  are  limited. 
I  have  not  made  money  out  of  politics.  One  course  only 
is  left  open  to  me.  I  notify  you  that  I  shall  issue  a 
statement  to  the  people  of  this  State.  I  shall  inform 
them  that  I  have  been  abandoned  by  the  State  Com 
mittee  and  the  party  machine.  I  shall  state  the  reasons 
very  plainly.  I  shall  say  I  am  left  to  defeat  because  I 
refused  to  betray  the  people's  interests.  Then  I  shall 
appeal  to  the  people  as  a  whole — to  Republicans  and 
Democrats  alike — for  support  at  the  polls.  If  there  are 
enough  honest  men  to  elect  me,  very  well.  If  the 
majority  wants  to  hand  the  thing  over  to  the  looters  and 
tricksters  after  the  fair  warning  I  give  them,  they  will 
do  so  with  their  eyes  open,  and  I'll  accept  the  result  and 
leave  this  State  to  itself." 

268 


STARTING    A    MULE    TEAM 

Chairman  Presson  pushed  himself  slowly  up  out  of 
his  chair,  his  arms  propping  him,  his  face  shoved  for 
ward. 

"You  mean  to  say,  General  Waymouth,  that,  being  a 
Republican,  a  man  who  has  had  honors  from  our  hands, 
you'll  advertise  your  party  management  as  crooks  sim 
ply  because  we  don't  cut  our  own  throats,  politically  and 
financially?" 

"I  say,  I  shall  state  the  facts." 

"Let  me  inform  you  that  I've  got  a  little  publicity 
bureau  of  my  own.  I'll  post  you  as  a  deserter  and  a 
sorehead.  I'll  fix  it  so  you  can't  even  throw  your  hat 
into  the  Republican  party  and  follow  in  to  get  it. 
I'll—" 

"One  moment,  Luke,"  broke  in  the  elder  Thornton. 
"For  some  weeks  now,  when  things  have  come  to  a 
crisis,  you  have  set  yourself  up  as  the  whole  Republican 
party  of  this  State.  But  when  you  get  to  talking  that 
way  you  represent  it  about  as  much  as  Parson  Prouty 
represents  the  real  temperance  sentiment.  There's 
quite  a  bunch  of  us  who  are  not  in  the  ramrodding 
business.  General  Waymouth  is  the  nominee  of  our 
convention.  No  one  has  delegated  to  you  the  job  of 
deciding  on  his  qualifications.  It's  your  job  to  go  ahead 
and  elect  him.  If  you  don't  propose  to  do  it,  then 
resign." 

"No,  sir!"  shouted  Presson. 

"Then  get  busy — collect  a  campaign  fund  and  make 
these  last  three  weeks  hum!  This  is  largely  a  matter 
between  friends,  right  here  now.  I've  told  Vard  what 
I  think  of  him,  and  I  haven't  minced  words.  It's  bad 
enough  for  a  man  to  try  to  be  absolutely  honest  in 
politics.  That's  where  he's  making  his  mistake.  But 
he  can  get  past  with  the  people — they'll  think  it  more 
or  less  bluff,  anyway,  even  it's  Varden  Waymouth  talk 
ing.  But  the  kind  of  dishonesty  you're  standing  for, 

269 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Luke,  won't  get  past.  They'll  ride  you  out  of  this  State 
on  a  rail — and  I'll  furnish  the  rail." 

"I'll  furnish  something  more!"  cried  Harlan,  unable 
to  restrain  himself  any  longer.  "To-morrow  morning  I 
shall  put  ten  thousand  dollars  into  General  Waymouth's 
campaign  fund — my  own  money." 

"You  see,  Luke,"  drawled  the  Duke,  "it  really  looks 
as  though  Yard  would  be  elected  anyway.  I  might 
subscribe  a  little  myself  if  only  I  had  a  rich  grandfather, 
the  same  as  Harlan  has." 

The  unhappy  chairman  sat  down  in  his  chair  again 
and  struggled  with  his  anger.  He  could  not  give  it  rein 
—he  realized  that.  Party  and  personal  interests  were 
all  jeopardized.  But  he  knew  he  could  not  afford  to 
have  utter  personal  disgrace  accompany  his  defeat. 
Desertion  of  the  party  candidate,  if  advertised  in  the 
fashion  the  General  threatened,  meant  ruin  of  his  name 
as  well  as  his  fortune.  He  could  have  sulked  and 
excused  himself,  but  there  was  no  excuse  for  inaction 
after  demand  had  been  made  upon  him  in  this  fashion. 

There  was  silence  in  the  room. 

"Fellow  up  our  way  used  to  be  a  mighty  good  mule 
teamster,"  said  Thelismer  Thornton,  tipping  his  great 
head  back  into  clasped  hands,  and  gazing  medita 
tively  at  the  ceiling.  "Had  a  gad  for  the  wheel  mules, 
whip  for  the  swing  team,  and  a  pocketful  of  rocks  for 
the  leaders.  One  day  the  rocks  gave  out  just  as  the 
wagon  sunk  into  a  honey-pot  on  a  March  road.  But 
being  a  good  teamster,  he  yanked  out  his  pipe  and  threw 
it  at  the  nigh  leader  just  at  the  critical  second.  Sparks 
skated  from  crupper  to  mane  along  the  mule's  back,  and 
he  gave  a  snort  and  a  heave,  and  away  they  went." 

Chairman  Presson,  deep  in  his  trouble,  was  disgusted 
by  this  levity,  and  growled  under  his  breath. 

"  If  a  fellow  had  been  off  ahead  of  the  team  with  a  bag 
of  oats  perhaps  the  pipe  wouldn't  have  been  needed," 

270 


STARTING    A    MULE    TEAM 

pursued  the  Duke,  meditatively.  "  Anyway,  gentle 
men,  I'll  tell  you  what  I'll  do.  I've  been  waiting  to  be 
called  on  for  my  contribution  for  the  fund,  but  for  some 
reason  business  hasn't  been  started  in  this  campaign  as 
soon  as  I  hoped.  Harlan  was  a  little  excited  just  now. 
I  think,  seeing  that  the  State  Committee  is  now  going  to 
take  hold  of  the  campaign,  he'll  be  able  to  get  out  of  it  a 
little  cheaper.  A  lot  of  the  other  boys  will  chip  when 
they're  asked.  For  the  Thornton  family  I  lead  off  sub 
scriptions  with  a  pledge  of  five  thousand  dollars.  I'm 
that  much  interested  in  seeing  my — my  original  choice 
for  Governor  elected  by  a  good  majority." 

Presson  got  up,  and  stamped  down  his  trousers  legs. 

"I  know  when  I'm  licked,"  he  admitted.  "And  I've 
been  licked  in  the  whole  seventeen  rounds  of  this  cam 
paign.  Look  here,  General  Waymouth,  I'm  done  fight 
ing.  I  simply  throw  myself  on  your  mercy.  I  know 
how  you  feel  toward  me.  But  I've  got  just  this  to  say: 
it's  a  poor  tool  of  a  man  that  won't  fight  for  his  own  in 
terests  and  his  friends.  I've  done  it.  And  I'm  no  more 
of  a  renegade  than  the  usual  run  of  the  men  who  have  to 
play  politics  for  results.  I  don't  believe  you  are  going 
to  get  results,  General.  But  that's  neither  here  nor 
there.  There's  no  more  squirm  left  in  me.  I'll  take  hold 
of  this  campaign  and  elect  you.  If  there's  any  crumbs 
coming  to  me  after  that,  all  right!  I'm  at  your  mercy." 

"  I  tell  you  again  I've  no  time  or  inclination  for  petty 
revenge.  That  is  not  my  nature."  General  Waymouth 
was  as  cold  and  calm  as  inexorable  Fate  itself.  "  I  accept 
your  pledge,  Chairman  Presson.  Not  one  interest  of  yours 
that  is  right  will  suffer  at  my  hands.  On  the  other 
hand,  not  one  interest  that  is  wrong  will  be  protected. 
It's  simply  up  to  you!" 

"  I  don't  suppose  you  care  to  go  over  the  plans  with 
me  to  night?" 

"  I  shall  ask  you  to  confer  with  Mr.  Harlan  Thornton 
271 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

on  all  matters.  He  knows  my  wishes  and  plans.  He 
will  remain  here  at  headquarters  as  my  representative." 

If  the  chairman  felt  that  he  was  being  put  under 
guard  and  espionage,  his  face  did  not  betray  it.  He 
took  leave  of  the  General,  and  escorted  out  his  associate 
committeemen. 

"  Reminds  me  of  the  time  Uncle  Stote  Breed  went  with 
the  boys  on  a  fishing- trip,"  remarked  the  Duke,  after 
they  were  gone.  "  They  ate  the  sardines  out  of  the  tin 
before  Uncle  Stote  got  in  off  the  pond,  and  put  in  raw 
chubs  they'd  been  using  for  live  bait.  Uncle  Stote  ate 
'em  all.  '  Boys,  your  ile  is  all  right,'  said  he,  when  he 
cleaned  'em  out,  '  but  it  seems  to  me  your  leetle  fish  is  a 
mite  underdone.'  But  Luke  will  eat  anything  you  hand 
him  after  this,  Yard." 

He  took  his  grandson  by  the  arm,  and  started  him 
toward  the  door. 

"Let  the  General  get  to  bed,"  he  advised,  jocosely. 
"He  ought  to  have  pleasant  dreams  to-night." 

Harlan  expected  that  his  grandfather  would  have  some 
rather  serious  talk  for  his  ear.  But  he  merely  remarked, 
leaving  him  at  the  door  of  his  room:  "  If  you  keep  on, 
son,  I'll  be  passed  down  to  posterity  simply  as  '  Harlan 
Thornton's  grandfather.' " 


XXII 


FROM    THE    MOUTH    OP   A    MAID 

NDER  a  sudden  stimulus  of  rallies,  red 
fire,  and  band-music,  the  campaign  blos 
somed  promisingly.  Democracy's  dark 
hints  that  the  dominant  party  had  been 
rent  by  factional  strife  were  suddenly 
answered  by  an  outrush  of  spellbinders 
from  Republican  headquarters,  a  flood  of  literature,  and 
an  astonishing  display  of  active  harmony.  Chairman 
Luke  Presson  received  compliments  for  the  manner  in 
which  he  had  held  his  fire  until  he  "had  seen  the  whites 
of  the  enemy  ^  eyes."  He  replied  to  such  compliments 
with  fine  display  of  modest  reserve,  and  in  private  gritted 
his  teeth  and  swore  over  the  statement  that  General 
Waymouth  issued  to  the  voters  of  the  State — a  document 
that  bound  the  party  to  a  professed  programme  of 
honest  reorganization.  The  treasurer  of  the  State 
Committee  drew  checks  amounting  to  more  than  fifteen 
thousand  dollars  to  pay  for  the  printing,  postage,  and 
mailing  of  those  statements — a  bitter  expense,  indeed, 
considering  the  nature  of  the  promises.  Presson  saw 
only  gratuitous  stirring  of  trouble  in  the  hateful  declara 
tions  the  General  made.  It  was  his  theory  that  in 
politics  voters  never  arose  and  demanded  reforms  until 
some  disturber  shook  them  up  and  reminded  them  that 
reforms  were  needed. 

General   Waymouth   did   not  take   the   stump.     His 
age  forbade.     He  remained   away  from  headquarters. 

273 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

But  Harlan  Thornton  was  posted  there,  his  vigilant 
representative  and  executive.  In  his  attitude  toward 
Harlan  the  State  chairman  ran  the  gamut  of  cajolery, 
spleen,  wrath,  and  resentment — and  final  disgust.  It 
was  a  situation  almost  intolerable  for  Presson.  But 
a  chain  of  circumstances — events  unescapable  and  unique 
in  politics — bound  him  to  the  wheel  of  the  victor. 

Harlan  understood  the  chairman's  state  of  mind.  Day 
by  day  he  made  his  discourse  with  that  gentleman  as 
brief  as  possible,  and  he  kept  away  from  the  Presson 
home.  His  action  was  dictated  by  a  feeling  of  delicacy, 
in  view  of  the  father's  sentiments.  Presson  treated  him 
in  business  hours  as  a  prisoner  would  treat  his  ball  and 
chain.  And  Presson  showed  no  desire  to  take  that 
badge  of  his  servitude  home  with  him.  Enduring 
Harlan  in  the  committee  headquarters  strained  his  self- 
possession  daily. 

So  the  young  man  lied  brazenly  in  reply  to  the  blandly 
courteous  notes  of  invitation  from  Mrs.  Presson,  who 
continued  alert  to  the  promising  social  qualifications 
of  General  Waymouth's  chief  lieutenant.  He  pleaded 
work.  It  was  true  in  a  measure.  The  day  was  filled 
with  duties  to  which  he  applied  himself  unflaggingly. 

But  from  the  supper-table  he  hurried  out  each  evening 
into  the  country,  escaping  from  the  city  by  the  side 
streets,  tramping  miles  of  lane  and  highway  and  field. 
His  muscles  craved  the  exertion.  The  city  oppressed 
him.  His  unwonted  toil  within  four  walls  sapped  his 
energy. 

One  evening  he  stepped  aside  from  the  highway.  A 
horse,  trotting  smartly,  was  overtaking  him.  But  the 
horse  did  not  pass  him.  It  slowed  down  to  his  stride, 
and  Madeleine  Presson  called  him  from  her  trap.  She 
was  alone. 

"As  this  is  the  campaign  of  'honesty,'  I'll  be  honest 
with  you,"  she  said.  "This  is  not  an  accidental  meeting. 

274 


FROM    THE    MOUTH    OF    A    MAID 

I  have  been  guessing  at  the  roads  you  might  take,  and 
have  been  on  your  trail  for  days.  That's  a  bold  con 
fession  for  a  girl  to  make;  but  I've  got  even  a  bolder 
request:  please  climb  up  here  and  ride." 

He  climbed  up.  He  went  up  with  alacrity.  From 
the  first  of  their  acquaintance  the  girl  had  interested  him 
— and  yet  it  was  more  than  mere  interest  or  feminine 
attraction.  Her  culture,  her  keen  analysis  of  events 
and  men,  her  knowledge  of  conditions  informed  and 
instructed  him.  Her  subtle  humor  and  droll  insight 
into  the  characters  of  those  who  attempted  to  pose  in 
the  public  eye  entertained  him,  for  he  lacked  humor. 
But,  most  of  all,  her  satire  gave  him  a  truer  perspective. 
Fresh  from  the  north  country,  where  his  knowledge  of 
public  men  had  been  limited  to  the  information  which 
newspapers  had  given  him,  he  had  classed  them  wrongly. 
His  own  gravity  had  given  them  too  eminent  qualities. 
The  girl,  knowing  them,  had  pricked  their  assumptions 
with  good-humored  satire,  and  he  looked  at  them  again 
and  found  them  as  she  said.  As  he  sat  beside  her  and 
the  horse  walked  on,  he  was  conscious  that  in  avoiding 
her  he  had  been  depriving  himself  both  of  entertainment 
and  valuable  instruction.  It  was  a  rather  selfish  reflec 
tion,  but  he  could  not  help  it. 

"Now,  Mr.  Harlan  Thornton,  from  what  my  father 
says  about  the  house,  when  he's  so  angry  that  he  really 
doesn't  know  what  it  is  he's  saying,  I  understand  you're 
playing  hob  with  all  the  traditions  of  politics.  In  order 
to  be  honest,  do  you  find  it  necessary  to  oppose  all  the 
things  my  father  wants  to  do  ?  If  you  dare  to  say  so 
you'll  be  called  on  to  have  some  very  serious  conversation 
with  my  father's  daughter." 

"I  don't  want  any  differences  with  your  father — or 

with  you,   Miss  Presson,"   he  declared,   earnestly.     "I 

honestly  don't!     It  all  seems  to  be  a  mighty  mixed-up 

mess.      I  sometimes  wish  I'd  stayed  back  home  in  the 

19  275 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

woods.  I'm  too  little  a  fellow  to  be  in  such  a  big  game. 
I'm  afraid  I'm  so  small  I  can  only  see  one  side  of  it." 

"You  admit  there  are  two  sides?" 

"My  grandfather  and  your  father  have  impressed 
that  on  me  pretty  strongly." 

"  Isn't  there  any  good  in  the  other  side  ?  Do  you  mean 
to  tell  me  that  all  the  men  in  politics  in  this  State  are 
wrong  except  you  and  old  General  Waymouth  ? " 

"No,  but  it's  the  way  of  doing  things.  I  guess  it's 
that." 

She  drew  her  horse  to  a  stop.  The  country  road  was 
quiet.  The  hush  of  the  starry  August  night  was  over 
all. 

"Mr.  Thornton,"  she  said,  looking  him  squarely  in  the 
eyes,  "with  all  due  respect  to  the  mighty  masculine, 
I  believe  you  are  in  need  of  a  few  suggestions  from  a 
woman's  standpoint.  You  haven't  acquired  the  art  of 
flattery.  If  so,  you'd  be  gallant  and  say  I  have  just  as 
much  acumen  as  you  have  honesty." 

"I'll  say  it!     It's  so!"  he  protested. 

"No,  you're  too  late.  I  very  unmodestly  gave  myself 
the  compliment.  Now  I'm  going  to  tell  you  where  you 
are  wrong  in  this  whole  matter,  Mr.  Thornton.  You 
are  reckoning  without  the  human  instruments  that  you 
must  employ.  I'll  wait  just  a  moment  and  let  that 
remark  sink  into  your  mind.  You  are  a  bit  slow  about 
grasping  the  full  purport  of  remarks,  Mr.  Harlan  Thorn 
ton."  There  was  a  touch  of  her  satiric  humor  in  her 
tone.  "Now,  you  don't  fully  understand,  even  yet.  I 
think  I'll  have  to  illustrate.  I've  already  told  you  that 
I've  watched  matters  pretty  closely  at  the  capital.  I 
like  to  see  young  men  come  here  with  ideals  and  succeed, 
but,  alas,  they  do  not." 

"They  let  themselves  be  bought  or  bribed  or  bossed, 
probably,"  blurted  Harlan. 

"I'm  not  talking  about  that  kind.  They  are  too 
276 


FROM    THE    MOUTH    OF    A    MAID 

obvious  and  too  common.  I  complimented  my  own  self. 
Now  you  are  insulting  yourself  by  jumping  at  conclusions. 
You  should  have  a  better  opinion  of  yourself,  sir.  I  have. 
I  do  not  believe  you  could  be  bought  or  bossed  or  even 
coaxed  from  what  you  considered  your  honest  duty. 
You  do  not  need  to  assure  me.  But  you  might  be 
convinced,  Mr.  Thornton — convinced  by  good  reasons — 
that  it  is  not  a  young  man's  duty  to  ruin  his  own  pros 
pects  and  his  own  influence  by  undertaking  something 
as  impracticable  as  though  he  tried  to  be  a  meteor  by 
holding  a  candle  in  his  hand  and  jumping  off  a  roof.  I 
could  praise  his  imagination,  but  not  his  judgment." 

She  waited  a  moment.  She  gazed  at  him  with  sudden 
sympathy. 

"You  are  a  straightforward  young  man,  used  to  win 
ning  your  way  by  direct  means — axe  to  the  tree,  cant- 
dog  to  the  rolling  log,  but  that  isn't  the  way  in  politics. 
I  know  this  preachment  from  me  sounds  strange.  It 
may  offend  you,  but  you  mustn't  allow  yourself  to  be 
offended.  You  have  simply  quarrelled  with  the  men 
who  have  tried  to  tell  you — it's  no  use  for  your  grand 
father  or  my  father  to  talk  with  you.  Men  do  quarrel 
too  easily.  I  am  taking  a  woman's  advantage  of  you, 
sir.  I  said  I  would  illustrate.  I  will.  One  of  the  finest 
young  men  I  ever  knew  came  down  to  the  legislature  and 
started  in  to  expose  and  hold  up  every  appropriation 
measure  that  had  the  least  appearance  of  being  padded. 
Just  straight-out  and  blunt  honesty,  you  understand. 
A  little  affectation,  too.  A  bit  of  self-advertising  as 
well.  But  we  all  excuse  a  little  self -consciousness  in 
youth.  Well,  he  simply  became  a  red  rag  to  the  House. 
They  sneered  and  hissed  when  he  stood  up.  Just  in 
blind  rage  they  voted  for  every  appropriation  he  op 
posed.  He  did  much  more  harm  than  he  did  good.  He 
didn't  get  his  own  appropriations  for  the  district  he 
represented.  And  it  killed  him  in  politics  and  in  his 

277 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

law  business.  The  happy  people  did  not  acclaim  him 
as  their  faithful  watchdog  of  the  treasury.  They  merely 
pronounced  him  a  bore  with  a  swelled  head.  You  see, 
I  can  talk  political  talk  with  all  the  phrases,  Mr.  Thorn 
ton." 

"But  he  was  right,  wasn't  he — fundamentally  right?" 

"He  meant  to  be  right — that's  the  term  to  use.  But 
he  forgot  that  he  must  use  human  instruments  in  order 
to  accomplish  anything.  And  he  just  failed  miserably." 

"What  would  you  expect  him  to  do — join  in,  and  be 
just  like  the  others  ?  Where  would  any  good  come  out 
of  anything?" 

"Now,  you  are  insisting  again  that  there  is  good  only 
on  one  side  of  the  question.  That's  bigotry.  It's 
what  I'm  trying  to  warn  you  against.  Some  one  has 
said  that  life  is  compromise.  It's  true  of  politics,  if 
you're  going  to  get  the  most  out  of  it.  I  know  what  you 
are  undertaking.  General  Waymouth  hasn't  left  much 
to  the  imagination  in  his  letter.  And  I've  talked  with 
others.  And  so  I  know  how  visionary  you  are." 

"You've  talked  with  Linton — that's  the  one  you've 
talked  with!"  declared  Harlan,  indignantly.  "And  if 
he's  told  you  what  I  have  told  him  in  confidence 
he's  more  of  a  sneak  than  I've  already  found  him  out  to 
be." 

"Mr.  Linton  did  not  consider  that  you  were  making 
any  secret  of  your  principles.  And  you'll  excuse  me, 
but  I  think  his  principles  are  exactly  as  good  as  yours. 
You  are  talking  now  like  the  ramrodders.  Their  first 
retort  to  any  one  who  differs  with  them  is  to  call  names." 

"But  he  deserted  General  Waymouth  under  fire.  He 
promised,  and  went  back  on  that  promise." 

"According  to  all  political  good  sense  and  in  any  other 
times  but  these,  when  men  seem  to  be  running  wild, 
General  Waymouth  was  politically  out  of  the  game. 
It's  all  fine  and  grand  in  story-books,  Mr.  Thornton, 

278 


FROM    THE    MOUTH    OF    A    MAID 

for  the  hero  to  sacrifice  everything  for  his  ideals,  but 
in  these  very  practical  days  he's  only  classed  as  a  fool 
and  kicked  to  one  side." 

"  You  defend  Linton,  then  ?  Is  that  the  kind  of  a  man 
you  hold  up  as  a  success,  Miss  Presson  ? "  His  grudge 
showed  in  his  tone. 

"You  will  please  understand,  sir,  that  we  are  not  dis 
cussing  theories  just  now.  This  isn't  a  question  of  what 
the  world  ought  to  be.  It's  the  plain  fact  about  what 
a  man  must  be  if  he's  to  get  results.  You  and  I 
both  have  heard  your  grandfather  say  many  times 
that  he'd  like  to  play  politics  with  angels  —  if  only  he 
could  find  the  angels.  It's  hard  to  own  up,  when  you're 
young,  that  human  nature  is  just  as  it  is.  I  under 
stand  how  you  feel.  I  know  you  feel  it's  a  very  strange 
thing  for  me  to  do — talk  to  you  like  this.  But  I  want 
you  to  understand  that  my  father  has  had  nothing  to 
do  with  it." 

He  turned  to  her  accusingly. 

"But  I  know  perfectly  well,"  he  said,  bitterly,  "that 
it  isn't  any  personal  interest  you  take  in  me  that  makes 
you  say  it.  You  don't  think  enough  of  me  for  that." 
It  was  resentment  so  naively  boyish  that  her  astonish 
ment  checked  her  remonstrance.  He  rushed  on.  "You 
hold  up  Linton  for  me  to  follow.  That's  the  kind  of  a 
man  you  admire.  He's  an  orator,  and  he's  smart,  and 
he  wins.  I'm  only  an  accident.  You  meant  that  when 
you  said  that  General  Waymouth  won  out  only  because 
matters  were  mixed  up  in  politics.  You  don't  care  any 
thing  about  me,  personally.  But  you're  talking  to  me 
because  my  grandfather  asked  you  to.  That's  it." 
He  guessed  shrewdly. 

That  outburst  betrayed  him.  This  young  man  from 
the  north  country  was  very  human  after  all,  she  decided. 

"I  have  said  before,  this  is  a  campaign  of  honesty. 
Your  grandfather  did  ask  me  to  talk  to  you.  I  didn't 

279 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

have   the   heart   to   refuse   him,  for  I'm  very  fond  of 
him." 

It  was  an  acknowledgment  that  stung  his  pride.  But 
more  than  all,  it  stirred  that  vague  rancor  he  had  felt 
the  first  time  he  had  seen  Linton  appropriate  her. 

He  did  not  choose  gallant  words  for  reply. 

"He  has  set  you  on  me,  has  he,  to  pull  me  away  from 
what  I  think  is  right  ?  He  wants  me  to  be  like  the  rest 
of  'em,  eh  ?  I  can  be  an  understudy  for  Herbert  Linton 
and  an  errand  boy  for  the  State  machine!  I  didn't 
think,  Miss  Presson,  that  you — 

"You'd  better  not  go  any  further,  Mr.  Harlan 
Thornton.  My  affection  for  an  old  man  who  has  set 
his  heart  on  your  success  has  brought  me  into  this  affair, 
and  I  assure  you  I  don't  enjoy  the  situation.  You  are 
not  asked  to  betray  any  one,  or  desert  any  high  moral 
pinnacle,  or  do  anything  else  that  the  moralists  say  all 
these  fine  things  about  without  knowing  what  they  mean 
half  the  time.  You  are  reminded  of  this:  that  there's 
only  one  General  Waymouth.  There's  a  sudden  big 
call  for  him  because  factions  have  got  into  a  row  with 
each  other.  Folks  will  rally  around  him  for  a  little 
while — it's  a  sort  of  revival  sentiment.  But  you  are 
not  a  General  Waymouth.  He'll  be  excused  by  senti 
ment,  you'll  simply  be  branded  as  one  of  the  common 
run  of  ramrodders  who  try  to  achieve  the  impossible 
with  human  nature — a  disturbing  element  in  State 
politics — and  your  career  will  be  spoiled.  Now  I've 
delivered  my  message,  and  done  what  I  promised  your 
grandfather  I'd  do." 

She  turned  her  horse,  and  started  him  back  toward 
town. 

There  was  silence  between  them  for  a  time. 

"So,  if  I  weren't  Thelismer  Thornton's  grandson  you 
wouldn't  take  any  interest  in  me  at  all?"  he  inquired, 
sourly. 

280 


FROM   THE    MOUTH    OF   A   MAID 

"A  very  impudent  and  unnecessary  question,  Mr. 
Harlan  Thornton.  I'm  afraid  your  grandfather  is  right 
— you  have  stayed  in  the  woods  too  long." 

Longer  silence. 

He  was  more  humble  when  he  spoke  again.  "I 
don't  want  you  to  think  I'm  what  I  may  seem  to  be, 
Miss  Presson.  But  what  is  there  I  can  do  in  politics, 
just  now,  different  from  what  I'm  doing?  I  have  taken 
my  side  with  the  General.  I  propose  to  stay  there, 
of  course.  But  I  do  not  want  to  have  people  think  I'm 
a  fool.  And  I  haven't  heard  much  else  from  any  one 
since  I  started  out."  There  was  wistfulne=s  in  his  voice. 
He  suddenly  felt  drawn  to  her.  He  craved  her  counsel. 
It  was  the  mastery  of  the  woman,  more  worldly-wise. 
He  was  bewildered  and  ashamed.  The  image  of  Clare 
Kavanagh  was  not  dimmed  in  his  soul.  She  had  been 
with  him  daily  in  his  thoughts.  He  knew  that  he  felt 
affection  for  her.  It  was  tenderness,  desire  to  protect, 
the  real  impulse  of  the  man  toward  his  mate.  But  the 
feeling  was  all  unexpressed  and  incoherent. 

And  yet  Madeleine  Presson,  more  than  ever  before, 
attracted  him  powerfully.  She  had  the  elements  that 
he  had  never  seen  and  experienced  in  womankind. 
Just  at  that  moment  she  dominated,  for  his  passion 
had  betrayed  him  into  a  rather  puerile  outbreak. 

Subtle  analysis  of  the  emotions  was  beyond  him.  He 
did  not  understand.  His  life  had  trained  him  along  more 
primitive  lines  of  selection.  But  he  realized  now  that 
he  was  trying  to  probe  something  in  his  soul  that  defied 
his  rather  limited  powers  of  judging.  He  had  not  given 
his  heart  unreservedly,  he  had  not  pledged  himself. 
Clare  Kavanagh  had  repented  of  a  child's  weakness  and 
had  run  away  from  him,  vaguely  hinting  that  she  would 
forget  him.  This  masterful  young  woman,  driving  him 
back  to  town,  her  determined  profile  outlined  against 
the  gloom  as  he  gazed  shyly  at  her,  did  not  appear  to 

281 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

be  interested  in  him,  except  as  a  rebel  to  authority  and 
needing  chastisement. 

The  child  of  the  woods,  as  he  thought  of  her,  stirred 
all  his  tenderness,  his  sympathy,  and  the  soft  ties  of 
long  intimacy  and  understanding  bound  him. 

But  this  girl,  with  beauty  and  brains,  on  his  own  level 
of  independence  of  thought,  stirred  new  desires  and  am 
bitions  in  him.  She  was  helpmate  and  counsellor.  He 
wondered  if  newer  times  and  conditions  did  not  demand 
stronger  qualities  than  mere  womanhood  in  the  wife 
who  was  to  accompany  a  man  into  the  vicissitudes  of 
public  life.  Not  that  he  felt  that  he  was  more  than  an 
humble  instrument  of  the  real  power.  But  he  fell  to 
considering  the  subject  from  the  general  viewpoint.  His 
own  experiences  had  awakened  new  ideas  that  he  pon 
dered,  having  a  very  provocative  suggestion  at  his  side. 

Still  more  humbly  he  asked  her:  "If  you  have  been 
thinking  the  matter  over,  Miss  Presson,  what  advice 
do  you  give  me?" 

"I  advise  you  to  have  a  serious  talk  with  your  grand 
father.  He  has  had  much  experience.  Use  your  own 
judgment,  too,  but  be  ready  to  hear  the  evidence. 
You  have  not  shown  that  willingness,  yet,  so  far  as  I 
can  determine.  I  haven't  any  advice  of  my  own  to 
offer.  I'll  not  presume.  Only  this:  be  as  honest  as 
you  can,  but  don't  be  so  impractically  honest  that  you 
chop  down  all  your  bridges  behind  you  and  neglect  to 
gather  timber  for  the  bridges  ahead  of  you." 

Even  in  the  gloom  she  understood  that  he  was  puz 
zled. 

"Really,  you  know,  I  haven't  written  any  handbook 
on  practical  politics,  Mr.  Thornton,"  she  said,  her  humor 
coming  to  the  rescue.  "I  have  talked  to  you  as  though 
I  had.  But  I've  only  talked  to  you  with  a  woman's 
intuition  in  such  matters — and  you  remember,  too,  I've 
seen  much  of  legislative  life.  You  can  be  good  in  politics 

282 


FROM    THE    MOUTH    OF    A    MAID 

— but,  oh,  don't  be  impractical!  I  want  you  to  suc 
ceed.  " 

"You  do?" 

"I  most  certainly  do."     She  said  it  heartily. 

No  other  word  passed  between  them  until  they  arrived 
in  front  of  the  hotel. 

He  reached  up,  after  he  had  alighted,  and  grasped  her 
hand.  She  had  impulsively  put  out  her  own  to  meet  his. 

"I'll  try  to  be —  "  he  began,  and  then  hesitated.  He 
had  been  pondering.  But  his  thoughts  were  still  so 
confused  that  he  could  not  think  of  the  word  that 
expressed  exactly  what  he  desired  to  make  himself. 

"Be  human,"  she  said,  smiling  down  on  him.  "You 
won't  find  yourself  of  much  use  in  the  world  unless  you 
cultivate  the  faculty  of  personal  contact,  and  you  musn't 
try  to  leap  into  politics  in  this  State  right  from  the 
pedestal  of  a  demigod.  You  may  be  able  to  elevate  your 
self  later,  but  just  now,  my  dear  young  friend,  you 
should  be  reasonable.  That's  a  word  that  means  much 
in  handling  men  and  affairs.  Now  I  hope  I've  softened 
you  so  that  you  will  listen  to  your  good  grandfather 
when  he  has  advice  for  you." 

She  did  not  allow  herself  to  be  too  serious.  There  was 
the  delicious  drawl  in  her  tone  that  had  attracted  him 
at  first. 

He  went  to  his  room  and  sat  down  to  digest  that  politi 
cal  philosophy.  If  some  one  beside  Madeleine  Presson 
had  said  it,  it  would  have  seemed  to  him  like  the  voice 
of  the  temptress.  But  she  had  already  won  his  confidence 
in  her  sincerity.  He  wished  that  he  could  feel  that  her 
interest  in  him  had  more  of  a  personal  quality  than  she 
had  admitted.  He  did  not  like  to  remember  that  it 
was  simply  affection  for  his  grandfather  that  prompted 
her.  He  did  not  understand  very  well  what  he  was  to 
do  to  obey  her  suggestions.  He  did  not  understand  him 
self  exactly  at  that  moment.  But  along  with  his  loyalty 

283 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

to  General  Waymouth  a  new  desire  sprang  into  life 
within  him.  He  wanted  to  show  Luke  Presson's  daugh 
ter  that  Harlan  Thornton  could  play  the  game  of  practi 
cal  politics  as  well  as  Herbert  Linton,  and  in  the  end 
would  be  more  deserving  of  her  respect. 


CHAPTER   XXIII 

A    TRUCE 

EN.  VARDEN  WAYMOUTH  was  elected 
Governor.  In  spite  of  the  sullen  torpor 
of  his  party  managers  and  the  snarls 
of  the  Reverend  Prouty  and  his  radical 
ilk,  he  surmounted  by  mere  momentum 
of  his  party  a  certain  bland  and  trust 
ful  and  destructive  indifference  of  the  general  public, 
and  won  at  the  polls.  The  narrow  margin  by  which  he 
won  would  have  scared  a  really  loyal  and  conscientious 
State  Committee.  But  the  before-and-after  gloom  of 
Chairman  Presson  and  his  intimates  was  not  caused  by 
any  worriment  over  the  size  of  the  plurality.  '  They 
were  languid  spectators.  They  felt  like  dispossessed 
tenants.  They  took  little  interest  in  the  temple  of  the 
party  faith. 

"When  they  buried  old  Zenas  Bellew  up  our  way 
(Zenas  weighed  three  hundred  and  fifty,  and  lived  in  a 
cottage  about  the  size  of  a  wood-box)  the  undertaker 
found  he  couldn't  get  the  coffin  into  the  house  or  get 
Zenas  out — not  through  doors  or  windows.  A  half 
witted  fellow  we  call  'Simpson's  Rooster'  spoke  up,  and 
said  they'd  better  bury  the  old  man  in  the  house  and 
move  the  family  out  into  the  coffin."  That  was  Thelis- 
mer  Thornton's  comment  on  the  political  situation  in  the 
Republican  party  on  the  morning  after  the  election. 
The  chairman  heard  it  with  the  gloom  of  a  mourner. 
He  could  see  nothing  bright  in  the  jest  or  the  prospects. 

285 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

There  was  a  frigid  truce  during  the  four  months  that 
elapsed  between  the  election  and  the  assembling  of  the 
legislature. 

General  Waymouth  retired  to  the  brick  house  in  Burn- 
side,  and  gave  ear  to  those  who  promptly  made  his  home 
the  Mecca  of  the  State.  There  were  office-holders  who 
wanted  to  hold  to  their  jobs,  office-seekers  who  suspected 
that  there  would  be  a  break  in  the  plans  of  party  patron 
age  ;  there  were  officious  gentlemen  suggesting  new  legis 
lation  for  the  next  administration  to  consider;  there 
were  crafty  gentlemen  trying  to  discover  what  the  ad 
ministration  would  recommend.  The  day  was  full  of 
cares,  duties,  annoyances,  and  the  nagging  pleadings  of 
persistent  petitioners. 

Harlan  Thornton,  now  representative-elect  from  the 
Fort  Canibas  district,  became  still  more  indispensable  in 
General  Waymouth's  daily  life.  Duties  at  a  desk  had 
worn  upon  him.  This  everlasting  mingling  with  men 
was  more  to  his  taste.  He  had  natural  adaptability. 
He  was  a  good  judge  of  human  nature.  He  had  serene 
good  nature.  Physique  and  manner  made  him  master  of 
many  situations  at  the  old  brick  house  that  otherwise 
would  have  sadly  tried  the  General's  strength  and  tem 
per.  Therefore,  his  chief  placed  greater  dependence  upon 
his  lieutenant  with  every  day  that  passed,  solicited  his 
opinions  as  his  knowledge  of  men  increased  and  his 
judgment  became  worth  more,  relied  upon  his  instinctive 
estimates  of  character,  and  shifted  many  burdens  to  the 
broad  shoulders  that  seemed  so  well  fitted  to  carry  them. 

Harlan  Thornton  was  slow  to  realize  what  a  tremen 
dous  power,  as  chamberlain,  he  really  exercised  in  the 
State. 

He  awoke  to  that  fact  more  slowly  than  did  the  men 
who  came  to  solicit.  He  did  not  try  to  use  his  power 
for  his  own  ends.  He  promptly  noted  the  deference  that 
men  paid  him;  as  promptly  he  penetrated  certain  plans 

286 


A    TRUCE 

men  made  to  corrupt  him,  if  they  could.  These  attempts 
were  made  slyly,  and  did  not  proceed  very  far.  Some 
thing  in  his  demeanor  prevented  the  plotters  from  openly 
broaching  their  desires  and  their  willingness  to  make 
their  interests  worth  his  while.  They  knew  that  one  of 
the  Thorntons  could  not  be  won  by  money,  but  they 
were  rather  surprised  to  find  out  that  he  could  not  be 
beguiled  by  other  inducements.  He  was  so  big  and 
manly,  and  he  had  rapidly  become  so  self-poised,  that 
they  did  not  realize  that  in  experience  he  was  only  a  boy, 
with  the  ingenuous  faith  and  simple  aims  and  candor  of 
boyhood.  He  perceived  what  he  might  win.  But  the 
pride  of  serving  General  Waymouth  loyally  was  worth 
more  to  him  than  anything  they  could  offer. 

His  duties  took  him  often  to  the  State  capital.  The 
chairman  of  the  State  Committee  was  coolly  courteous, 
often  gloomily  deferential,  sometimes  frankly  cordial — 
uneasily  trying  to  find  the  proper  level  to  stand  on  in  his 
intercourse  with  one  who  was  the  grandson  of  Thelismer 
Thornton,  and  also  the  chosen  confidant  of  the  man  who 
had  wrested  from  him  control  of  State  affairs. 

In  the  case  of  Madeleine  Presson,  there  was  none  of  this 
embarrassment.  He  saw  her  often.  She  met  him  half 
way  with  a  frank  interest  in  his  work  and  a  sympathy 
which,  in  those  days  of  truce,  did  not  question  his  ideals. 

He  became  a  welcome  intimate  of  the  Presson  house 
hold.  When  he  was  there  the  master  himself  put  aside 
all  the  brusqueness  he  displayed  in  their  down-town  dis 
course  on  politics.  The  girl  welcomed  him.  There  were 
many  hours  when  they  were  alone  together,  in  the  home 
or  on  long  drives  into  the  country.  She  did  not  refer  to 
their  talk  on  that  evening  when  she  read  to  him  his 
lesson  on  practical  politics.  He  avoided  that  subject. 
He  did  not  want  to  risk  any  further  disagreement  between 
them  on  the  matter  of  ideals — or,  for  that  matter,  on  any 
other  subject.  Association  with  her  had  become  too 

287 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

delightful  to  be  put  to  the  test  of  discussions  of  political 
methods.  He  was  still  drawing  upon  her  fund  of  worldly 
wisdom.  There  was  a  little  touch  of  the  cynic  in  her. 
He  became  secretly  ashamed  of  some  of  his  ingenuous  be 
liefs,  after  she  had  deftly  shown  him  the  other  side  of 
things.  She  did  show  him  the  other  side,  quite  in  a 
matter-of-fact  way.  It  was  not  that  she  was  trying  to 
break  down  his  faith.  There  was  nothing  sly  nor  crafty 
in  her  methods  of  improving  his  views.  But  by  inform 
ing  him,  she  made  him  wiser,  and,  at  the  same  time,  more 
distrustful  of  motives,  more  searching  in  his  investiga 
tions  of  methods.  He  began  to  doubt  some  of  his  earlier 
ideas  of  what  a  public  man  should  be.  He  felt  that  his 
views  were  broadening.  That  was  a  comfortable  way  of 
excusing  certain  surrenderings  to  her  ideas. 

The  more  he  drew  from  her  the  more  he  was  drawn 
to  her. 

It  was  not  the  love  that  comes  with  a  rush  of  the  emo 
tions  and  sweeps  a  man  away. 

Through  the  intellect,  through  his  hunger  for  informa 
tion  and  wider  views,  she  was  making  herself  indispen 
sable  to  his  welfare  and  his  ambitions. 

And  yet  Madeleine  Presson  was  not  trying  to  make 
this  young  man  of  the  north  country  fall  in  love  with 
her.  Her  interest  in  him  was  first  of  all  based  upon  his 
winning  earnestness  and  the  elements  of  success  that  she 
divined  in  him,  were  they  properly  cultivated.  She  had 
studied  men  at  the  capital  from  childhood.  The  develop 
ment  of  men  in  public  life  and  service  had  been  the  one 
theme  that  she  had  heard  most  discussed.  Her  impulse 
of  assistance  had  been  directed  toward  this  grandson  of 
Thelismer  Thornton. 

But  as  the  days  went  by,  and  opportunity  gave  them 
their  hours  together,  they  were  drawn  more  closely,  each 
insisting  in  secret  meditation  that  it  was  not  love.  He 
found  himself  gradually  rebuilding  his  creed  of  living  on 

288 


A    TRUCE 

the  foundation  she  had  laid  in  that  first  long  talk  of 
theirs.  He  had  arrived  at  such  a  point  of  belief  in  her 
that  he  was  glad  that  she  had  opened  his  eyes.  He  was 
finding  men — meeting  them  by  the  hundred — even  as  she 
had  pictured  them  to  him:  selfish,  scheming,  crafty,  and 
not  understanding  in  the  least  his  occasional  attempts  to 
meet  them  on  the  upper  level  of  perfect  candor.  For 
her  part,  she  found  more  in  this  young  man  than  she  had 
expected  to  find. 

Harlan  considered  Herbert  Linton  the  single  jarring 
note  in  this  new  symphony  of  mutual  interests. 

Linton  came  to  the  capital  with  more  or  less  regularity, 
and  called  on  the  Pressons  with  fully  as  much  appearance 
of  being  entirely  at  home  as  his  newer  rival.  When  they 
were  together  the  girl  treated  both  with  impartial  interest 
and  attention.  She  listened  to  each  in  turn,  and  if  they 
chose  to  sit  and  scowl  at  each  other  she  did  the  talking 
for  all  three.  Deftly  she  arranged  that  they  should  leave 
together,  and  they  always  promptly  separated  as  soon  as 
they  reached  the  sidewalk,  as  though  they  were  afraid  to 
trust  themselves  in  each  other's  company. 

So  the  new  year  came  in,  and  the  hordes  of  lawmakers, 
lobbyists,  lookers-on,  and  laymen  descended  on  the  State 
capital. 

The  first  few  days  of  a  legislative  session,  though 
packed  full  of  politics  and  business,  rush,  and  routine, 
are  festival  days,  after  all.  There  are  the  old  friends  to 
greet  and  the  new  friends  to  meet.  There  are  ten  spec 
tators  to  every  legislator,  and  the  spectators  are  on  hand 
for  a  good  time.  Outside  of  the  factional  clinches  of  the 
House  and  Senate  caucuses  the  early  days  have  little 
serious  business. 

Presson's  great  hotel  and  the  lesser  lights  of  the  cap 
ital's  houses  of  entertainment  were  packed  to  their  roofs. 
The  State  House  on  the  hill  sent  sparkling  radiance  at 
night  from  all  its  hundreds  of  windows  out  across  the 

289 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

snow  which  loaded  the  broad  lawns.  Senator  Pownal,  re- 
nominated  in  joint  caucus,  spoke  to  crowded  floor  and 
galleries  on  the  second  evening.  Harlan  Thornton,  in 
his  seat  in  the  House,  listened  and  wondered  if  that  con 
vention  had  not  been  a  dream. 

This  later  convocation  seemed  so  entirely  harmonious. 

The  Republicans  ruled  House  and  Senate  by  safe  ma 
jorities.  Presson,  sauntering  about  hotel  or  State  House 
lobby,  seemed  bland  and  contented  again.  The  wounds 
in  the  party  seemed  to  have  been  healed. 

On  inauguration  day  Governor  Waymouth  added  to 
the  general  spirit  of  harmony. 

He  came  unobtrusively  to  the  State  House  from  the 
modest  mansion  he  had  leased  in  the  capital  city  for  the 
legislative  winter  and  took  his  oath  of  office  before  an 
admiring  throng.  He  had  made  a  confidant  of  no  one 
regarding  his  inaugural  speech.  There  were  vague  ru 
mors  that  the  Governor  would  follow  his  hand,  as  he  had 
shown  it  in  his  letter  of  acceptance,  and  deliver  an  in 
augural  address  which  would  blister  the  ears  of  the 
politically  unregenerate. 

In  that  ancient  State  House,  its  accommodations  for 
spectators  limited,  there  were  no  hard-and-fast  rules 
regulating  admission  to  the  floor.  Harlan  Thornton  had 
a  chair  placed  in  the  aisle  beside  his  seat,  and  entertained 
Madeleine  Presson  there.  He  had  anticipated  Linton, 
who  came  with  a  similar  invitation.  Harlan  was  still 
enough  of  a  boy  to  feel  delight  in  the  discomfiture  of  his 
rival,  and  to  be  gratified  by  the  open  admiration  his  fellow- 
members  showed  for  the  girl  at  his  side.  He  relished  the 
sour  looks  which  Linton  sent  in  that  direction. 

Under  cover  of  the  general  buzz  and  bustle  that  ac 
companied  the  convening  of  the  joint  session  of  House 
and  Senate  for  the  purpose  of  the  inauguration  the  girl 
rallied  him  a  bit. 

"The  beginning  of  the  righteous  reign  seems  to  be  sane 

290 


A    TRUCE 

and  sweet,  after  all,"  she  said.  "Even  my  father  is 
complacent  and  purring  this  morning.  Which  has  he 
eaten,  do  you  know  —  the  raven  of  contention  or  the 
dove  of  peace?" 

"I  think  every  one  understands  that  Governor  Way- 
mouth  has  straightened  matters  out  for  all  of  us,"  he 
replied. 

"How?  By  simply  talking  about  it?  As  one  who 
should  say,  '  Let  it  be  done,'  and  it  was  done,  and  just 
what  was  done  nobody,  nobody  knew — but  it  was  done — 
something  was — and  all  the  folks  felt  better  and  went 
on  in  the  same  old  wray!  Is  that  it?" 

He  smiled  at  her  while  she  teased  him;  the  nature  of 
the  armistice  that  prevailed,  according  to  outward  ap 
pearances,  was  not  understood  by  him.  For  several 
weeks  his  intimacy  with  General  Waymouth  had  not  been 
as  close  as  at  the  first.  Not  that  there  was  distrust  or 
even  coolness  between  them.  The  veteran  still  depended 
on  the  young  man  for  the  services  a  trusted  lieutenant 
could  render.  His  plans,  however,  his  future  pro 
gramme  of  reorganization — if  he  had  any  definite  plans — 
the  General  kept  to  himself.  It  was  not  mere  reticence. 
But  there  was  an  atmosphere  about  the  old  statesman 
as  though  he  had  withdrawn  himself  to  a  higher  altitude 
to  think  his  thoughts  and  formulate  his  plans  alone. 
If  he  had  heard  of  the  intimacy  of  Harlan  Thornton  with 
the  family  of  Luke  Presson  he  made  no  comment  on  that 
fact. 

"Now  what  is  he  going  to  say  in  his  address?"  she 
asked.  "Every  one  will  know  in  a  few  moments.  Tell 
me  ahead — tell  me  the  big  utterance  that  will  make  the 
people  sit  up.  I  want  to  be  ready  to  watch  their 
faces!" 

"Why,  I  haven't  a  single  idea  what  he  will  say,"  he 
blurted. 

"Oh,  safe  repository,  I  salute  you!" 
20  291 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

"But  I  haven't!  The  Governor  hasn't  opened  his 
mouth  to  me ! ' ' 

"Have  a  care!  One  very  easily  steps  from  polite 
diplomacy  into  very  impolite  falsehood.  You  must  al 
ways  be  truthful  with  me,  Harlan." 

His  eyes  grew  brighter  and  his  tanned  cheeks  warm. 
It  was  the  first  time  she  had  addressed  him  without 
hateful  formality. 

"I  propose  to  tell  you  the  truth,  always,"  he  assured 
her.  "But  I  mean  what  I  say — the  Governor  has  kept 
his  address  to  himself." 

"  I  should  resent  that.  It  would  have  been  a  delicate 
compliment,  and  he  owed  that  much  to  you.  I'm  afraid 
he  has  been  a  politician  long  enough  to  be  like  all  the  rest 
—to  walk  up  to  power  on  men  as  one  uses  a  flight  of 
stairs,  and  then  to  put  the  stairs  behind  his  back;  for 
one  doesn't  walk  up-stairs  backward." 

He  flushed  more  deeply. 

"I'm  not  that  kind  of  a  fellow — jealous,  or  petty,  or 
expecting  a  great  deal  for  v/hat  little  service  I  can 
render." 

"Put  a  value  on  yourself,  though,"  she  advised  him. 
"It  really  isn't  human  nature,  you  know,  to  pick  up  the 
things  that  are  thrown  away  by  the  owners — to  pick 
them  up  and  keep  them  and  value  them,  I  mean.  That 
applies  to  purses  and  all  other  possessions,  including 
hearts  and  loyalty." 

He  started  to  say  something  to  her — even  though  the 
throng  pressed  about  them  he  would  have  said  it;  but 
the  voice  of  the  crier  at  the  door  announced  what  all  were 
waiting  for. 

"His  Excellency  the  Governor,  the  Honorable  Coun 
cil,  and  his  Excellency  the  Governor-elect  and  party!" 

They  filed  along  in  dignified  procession  down  the  centre 
aisle,  the  uniforms  of  the  officers  of  the  staff  giving  a  touch 
of  color  and  brightness  to  the  formal  frock-coats. 

292 


A    TRUCE 

The  Secretary  of  State  announced  the  official  figures  of 
the  vote  electing  Varden  Waymouth  as  Governor,  and 
after  his  sonorous  final  phrase,  "God  save  the  State 
of  -  — ,"  Governor  Waymouth  repeated  the  oath  of 
office  administered  by  a  gaunt,  sallow  lawyer  who  was 
the  president  of  the  Senate. 

The  clerk  of  the  House  set  a  reading-desk  on  the 
Speaker's  table  and  arranged  the  Governor's  manu 
script.  As  the  old  man  read  he  made  a  striking  picture. 
He  stood  very  erect.  His  snowy  hair,  the  empty  sleeve 
across  his  breast,  the  lines  the  years  had  etched  on 
cheeks  and  brow  gave  those  who  looked  on  him  a  little 
thrill  of  sympathetic  regret  that  one  so  old  should  be 
called  from  the  repose  of  his  later  years  to  take  up  such 
public  burdens  as  he  had  assumed.  But  his  voice  was 
resonant,  his  eye  wras  clear.  Nature  seemed  to  have 
given  him  new  strength  to  meet  what  he  was  now  facing. 
And  yet,  thought  some  of  those  who  listened,  it  might 
be  that  he  did  not  propose  to  make  a  martyr  of  himself, 
after  all.  His  address  did  not  threaten  or  complain. 
The  radicals  who  sat  there  with  set  teeth  and  bent  brows, 
hoping  to  hear  denunciation  after  their  own  heart,  were 
disappointed.  The  politicians  who  had  feared  now  took 
new  grip  on  their  hope — it  probably  was  not  to  be  as 
bad  as  they  had  anticipated. 

Harlan  Thornton  listened  to  the  calm,  moderate  state 
ment  of  the  State's  general  financial  and  political  situa 
tion  with  growing  sense  of  mingled  disappointment  and 
relief.  His  fighting  spirit  and  his  knowledge  of  condi 
tions,  as  they  had  been  revealed  to  him,  made  him  hope 
that  at  last  an  honest  man  proposed  to  clean  the  temple 
— entering  upon  his  task  with  bared  arms  and  a  clarion 
call.  This  mild  old  man,  confining  himself  to  the  details 
of  the  State's  progress  and  needs,  was  not  exactly  the 
leader  he  had  expected  him  to  be.  And  yet  Harlan  was 
relieved.  He  looked  at  the  girl  beside  him,  and  that  re- 

293 


lief  smoothed  away  his  disappointment.  As  matters 
were  shaping  themselves  he  no  longer  anticipated  that 
he  would  be  driven  into  pitched  battle,  forced  to  fight 
intrenched  enemies  of  reform — Luke  Presson's  face  most 
conspicuous  of  all  those  behind  the  party  wall  of  priv 
ilege.  As  he  listened  to  the  address  he  comforted  him 
self  with  the  thought  that  probably  political  disagree 
ments  loomed  more  blackly  as  a  cloud  on  the  horizon 
than  their  real  consistency  warranted.  He  was  not  in 
retreat — he  would  not  admit  that  to  himself  as  he  lis 
tened.  But  he  felt  that  compromise  and  a  better  under 
standing  were  in  the  air.  There  would  be  no  more  occa 
sion  for  troubled  arguments  between  himself  and  the 
girl  at  his  side.  He  did  not  understand  exactly  in  what 
way  it  would  be  done,  but  he  felt  that  Governor  Way- 
mouth  knew  how  to  win  his  reforms  without  such  party 
slaughter  as  the  first  engagements  hinted  at.  He  put 
himself  into  a  very  comfortable  frame  of  mind,  and  the 
girl  at  his  side,  by  her  mere  presence,  added  to  his  belief 
that  this  was  a  pretty  good  old  world,  after  all. 

He  had  lost  some  of  his  respect  for  "reform."  It  had 
been  exemplified  for  him  mostly  by  such  men  as  Prouty 
and  his  intolerant  kind — by  Spinney  and  his  dupes.  He 
felt  that  he  might  call  decency  by  some  other  name,  and 
arrive  at  results  by  the  calm  and  dignified  course  which 
Governor  Waymouth  now  seemed  to  be  pointing  out. 
He  suddenly  felt  a  warm  appreciation  of  the  wisdom  of 
Madeleine  Presson  as  she  had  made  that  good  sense 
known  to  him  in  their  talks. 

"For  it  is  by  my  works,  not  my  words,  that  I  would 
be  judged,"  concluded  the  Governor,  solemnly,  and 
bowed  to  the  applause  which  greeted  the  end. 

Neither  Harlan  Thornton  nor  any  other  listener  in  the 
great  assembly  hall  took  those  words  as  signifying  any 
thing  more  than  the  usual  pledge  of  faithful  performance. 

After  the  dissolving  of  the  joint  caucus  he  escorted 

294 


A    TRUCE 

Madeleine  to  the  council-chamber,  where  the  new  Gov 
ernor  was  holding  his  impromptu  reception.  There  were 
no  shadows  on  the  faces  which  pressed  closely  around 
him.  All  the  politicians  of  the  State  were  there,  eager  to 
be  the  first  to  congratulate  him.  Their  fears  had  been 
somewhat  allayed.  In  political  circles  it  was  well  un 
derstood  that  Waymouth  stood  for  a  clean-up.  It  had 
been  hinted  that  his  programme  would  be  drastic.  The 
members  of  the  machine,  more  intimately  in  the  secrets 
of  the  convention,  had  expected  that  the  old  Roman 
would  sound  the  first  blast  of  the  charge  in  his  inaugural 
address.  His  moderateness  cheered  them.  Harlan 
found  congratulation  sweetening  every  comment. 

The  General  received  the  young  couple  with  marked 
graciousness. 

"  Governor  Waymouth,  you  have  convinced  me  to-day 
that  you  are  the  apostle  of  universal  salvation  for  the 
wicked — in  politics,"  said  the  girl.  "  I  hope  the  doctrine 
will  be  accepted." 

"In  that  belief  you  are  safe  companion  for  my  first 
disciple,"  he  returned,  humoring  her  jest.  The  crowd 
carried  them  on. 

"I  believe  that,  too,"  Harlan  murmured. 

"Universal  salvation  according  to  the  new  political 
creed  ?" 

"I'm  not  thinking  about  politics.  I'm  not  thinking 
much  about  anything  else  just  now  except  you.  During 
the  Governor's  address  it  came  over  me  suddenly  what 
wise  counsel  you  gave  me.  If  I  had  you  for  an  adviser 
all  the  rest  of  my  life  I  could  amount  to  more  in  the 
world  than  I  ever  can  without  you." 

She  glanced  at  him  sharply. 

"I  mean  that,"  he  insisted.  "Will  you  be  my  ad 
viser  for  the  rest  of  my  life  ? " 

It  was  crude,  blunt,  and  sudden  proposal.  The  throngs 
were  eddying  about  them.  They  were  jostled  at  the 

295 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

moment  by  the  Toms,  Dicks,  and  Harrys  of  the  legisla 
tive  concourse.  Curious  eyes  surveyed  them.  Ears 
were  near  by. 

"I  can't  help  saying  it  here  and  now,"  he  rushed 
on.  "I — 

"My  dear  Harlan,  you  don't  mean  to  say  that  you  are 
proposing  to  me  here  in  the  face  and  eyes  of  this  crowd  ? " 
She  said  it  with  sudden  amazed  mirth  dancing  in  her 
eyes,  but  with  a  note  of  satire  in  her  tone. 

"I  do  mean  it!"  He  cried  it  so  loudly  that  men 
turned  their  heads  to  stare  at  this  earnest  young  man 
who  was  protesting  his  faith  to  the  handsome  daughter 
of  Luke  Presson. 

"  Hush! "  she  cried,  sharply,  and  then  pulled  him  along. 
She  spoke  low.  "I  don't  think  you  have  enough  humor 
in  you  to  realize  just  what  you  have  done,  Harlan.  I 
have  found  humor  lacking  in  you.  You  have  picked  out 
the  lobby  of  the  State  House,  in  the  middle  of  the  biggest 
crowd  of  all  the  year,  as  the  'love's  bower'  for  an  offer 
of  marriage.  You  say  you  mean  it  as  an  offer  of  mar 
riage.  But  what  you  really  did  was  to  ask  me  to  attach 
myself  to  you  as  general  adviser.  You  can  hire  a  clair 
voyant  who  will  do  that  much  for  you,  and  I  doubt  if 
you  would  engage  the  clairvoyant  as  publicly  as  you  have 
just  tried  to  engage  me." 

"I  understand  just  what  a  fool  I  made  of  myself,"  he 
muttered,  huskily.  "But  I  couldn't  wait — and  I  mean 
it." 

"No,  you  don't  realize  just  how  much  of  a  fool  you 
are  where  women  are  concerned,"  she  returned,  judicially. 
"A  woman — a  young  woman — is  generally  interested  in 
hearing  first  of  all  a  little  about  love  and  devotion  and 
loyalty,  all  unselfish  and  uncalculating.  Now  be  patient! 
Listen  to  me!  A  woman  can  detect  real  love.  And  real 
love  seeks  its  opportunity  sweetly  and  shyly.  It  doesn't 
preface  itself  with  remarks  about  a  woman's  brain  and 

296 


A    TRUCE 

advisory  ability.  I  believe  it  has  a  lot  to  say  about  eyes 
and  hair  and  lips  and  such  things.  However,  since  you 
admire  me  in  my  capacity  as  adviser,  I'll  advise  you  to 
be  sure  that  you  love  a  woman  before  you  propose  to  her, 
and  then  when  you  propose  pick  out  some  place  that's 
suitable  for  convincing  her  that  you  do  love  her.  I  see 
mother  yonder.  Take  me  to  her." 

Turning  away,  flushed  and  angry,  from  her  demure 
smile,  he  became  bitterly  conscious  that  even  had  they 
been  alone,  under  most  favorable  circumstances,  he 
would  have  lacked  speech  for  real  love-making.  He  felt 
that  conviction  inwardly.  He  wondered  whether  he  had 
the  capacity  for  loving  as  he  had  read  of  men  loving. 
It  made  him  a  bit  ashamed  to  think  of  himself  as  vio 
lently  protesting,  hungrily  pleading.  A  moment  before 
he  had  been  angry  because  she  doubted  his  love.  He 
knew  that  he  admired  her,  respected,  desired  her.  Now 
he  argued  with  himself,  and  convinced  his  soul  that  his 
emotions  constituted  love.  And  having  convinced  him 
self,  he  determined  to  seek  further  opportunity  of  con 
vincing  her.  It  was  truly  an  academic  way  of  settling 
matters  so  riotously  impatient  of  calculation  as  affairs 
of  the  heart,  and  his  determination  would  have  appealed 
to  Miss  Presson's  sense  of  the  humorous  more  acutely 
still  had  he  undertaken  to  explain  his  emotions  of  that 
moment. 

Thelismer  Thornton,  strolling  amiably  through  the 
lobby  throng,  came  and  put  his  hand  on  Harlan's 
shoulder. 

"The  best  way  to  make  good  sugar  is  to  simmer  the 
sap  slowly,  my  boy."  Harlan  glanced  sharply  at  him, 
but  the  Duke  was  not  discussing  love.  "Yard  has  got 
into  the  simmering  stage  at  last.  I  reckoned  he  would. 
He's  too  good  a  politician  to  boil  the  kettle  over  as  he 
started  in  doing.  What's  the  matter  with  you?  You 
look  as  though  you'd  been  listening  to  a  funeral  oration 

297 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

instead  of  an  address  that  has  put  the  party  back  on 
Easy  Street." 

His  grandson  was  careful  not  to  explain  the  cause  of 
his  gloom.  He  was  willing  to  let  politics  be  answerable. 

Chairman  Presson,  more  cheerful  than  he  had  been  for 
weeks,  came  and  crowded  between  them  in  a  cosey,  con 
fidential  manner. 

"Say,  the  old  fellow  is  getting  smoothed  down,"  he 
chuckled.  "That  address  was  milk  for  babes.  He's  got 
good  sense.  The  thin  edge  of  that  plurality  made  him 
think  twice.  I  reckon  he's  going  to  play  a  safe  game 
after  this.  I  don't  know  what  he  wanted  to  throw  such 
a  scare  into  us  early  in  the  game  for!  But  as  we  get  old 
we  get  cranky,  I  suppose.  I  may  be  that  way  myself 
when  I  grow  older." 

"  Vard  preached  the  theory  to  us  for  all  it  was  worth," 
commented  the  Duke,  "but  I  reckon  he's  up  against  the 
practice  end  of  the  proposition  now — and  he  was  a 
politician  before  he  was  a  preacher." 

"  Hope  he'll  stay  a  politician  after  this.  He  got  onto 
my  nerves.  It  wasn't  necessary  to  be  so  almighty  em 
phatic  about  things  going  wrong  in  this  State." 

"Old  Pinkney  up  our  way  is  always  careful  to  keep  an 
eye  out  for  the  drovers,"  said  the  Duke.  "  When  he  sees 
one  coming  he  hustles  out  into  the  pasture  and  shifts  the 
poker  off'n  the  breachy  critter  onto  the  best  one  in  the 
bunch.  And  that's  the  way  he  unloads  the  breachy  one. 
Vard  has  been  wearing  the  poker  the  last  few  weeks,  but 
I  don't  believe  he  intends  to  hook  down  any  fences." 

In  the  eyes  of  the  politicians,  therefore,  Governor 
Waymouth  had  become  safe  and  sane.  They  construed 
his  earlier  declarations  as  the  ambitions  of  an  old  man 
dreaming  a  dream  of  perfection.  The  legislature  swung 
into  the  routine  of  its  first  weeks  in  the  usual  fashion. 
The  business  consisted  of  the  presentation  of  bills,  acts, 
and  resolves.  The  daily  sessions  lasted  barely  half  an 

298 


A    TRUCE 

hour.     The  committee  hearings  had  not  begun,  and  the 
legislators  found  time  hanging  heavy  on  their  hands. 

Harlan  Thornton  continued  to  be  a  frequent  caller  at 
the  Presson  home.  But  he  did  not  seem  to  find  an  op 
portunity  for  a  tete-a-tete  with  Madeleine.  She  did  not 
show  constraint  in  his  presence.  She  did  not  avoid  him. 
She  treated  him  with  the  same  frank  familiarity.  But 
he  did  not  find  himself  alone  with  her.  He  did  not  try  to 
force  such  a  situation,  in  spite  of  the  provocation  she  had 
given  him  once.  He  was  not  yet  sure  that  he  could 
command  the  words  that  real  love  might  demand  for 
expression.  That  was  his  vague  excuse  to  his  own  heart 
for  delaying — for  his  heart  insisted  that  he  did  love  her. 
He  had  to  admit  to  himself  that  this  was  not  the  head 
long  passion  the  poets  described,  but  he  consoled  him 
self  with  the  reflection  that  he  was  not  a  poet.  So  he 
made  the  most  of  her  cordial  acceptance  of  him  as  he  was, 
and  felt  sure  that  Herbert  Linton  had  won  no  more  from 
her. 


CHAPTER   XXIV 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

HE  Honorable  Arba  Spinney  was  in  the 
lobby  as  usual  that  winter.  The  Duke's 
sarcastic  prediction  was  fulfilled.  He 
appeared  promptly  at  the  session's  open 
ing,  and  was  the  most  insistent  and  per 
sistent  member  of  the  "Third  House," 
as  the  paid  legislative  agents  were  called.  Most  of  the 
men  who  wormed  their  way  here  and  there  operated 
craftily  and  tried  to  be  diplomatic.  Spinney  strove  by 
effrontery.  As  usual,  he  made  the  country  members 
his  especial  prey.  The  story  of  his  knavery  at  the  State 
Convention  had  been  smothered  in  the  interests  of  the 
party.  He  reappeared  among  men  with  as  much 
assurance  as  ever.  He  even  approached  Harlan  Thorn 
ton  to  solicit  his  support  of  one  bill.  It  was  a  measure 
to  grant  State  subsidy,  through  exemption  of  taxation, 
to  assist  a  railroad  to  extend  its  lines  into  the  timber- 
land  country. 

Harlan  checked  him  promptly.  "I  don't  propose  to 
discuss  that  question  or  any  other  with  you,  Mr. 
Spinney." 

"If  that  road  is  built  it  will  double  the  value  of  half 
your  lands,"  insisted  the  lobbyist.  "It's  business  for 
you  and  it's  business  for  us,  and  there's  no  reason  why 
you  shouldn't  talk  business,  is  there?" 

"It  doesn't  interest  me,  Mr.  Spinney."  He  went  on, 
hotly:  "  I  know  just  as  much  about  the  matter  as  you  do. 

300 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

It's  an  attempt  to  evade  the  State  constitution,  which 
forbids  subsidizing  railroads.  Governor  Waymouth  has 
explained  it  to  me.  I  don't  propose  to  profit  by  any 
such  methods.  And  I'll  inform  you,  further,  that  it's 
just  about  the  sort  of  a  scheme  I'd  expect  to  find  you 
working  for.  Do  you  understand  me?" 

"I  know  what  you're  referring  to.  But  that  matter 
is  over  with.  I  got  the  worst  end  of  it.  You  helped  to 
pass  it  to  me.  You  can't  afford  to  carry  on  any  quarrel 
with  me,  Thornton.  Holding  grudges  is  bad  business; 
so  is  making  a  fool  of  yourself  by  playing  little  tin  saint 
in  public  matters." 

"I  hold  no  grudge  against  you.  That  would  be 
getting  down  on  your  level.  I'm  simply  disgusted  with 
you  as  a  man,  Mr.  Spinney.  That's  all.  You  know 
why.  Now  leave  me  alone." 

But  Spinney  boldly  intercepted  him.  Harlan  had 
started  to  leave.  The  lobbyist  realized  what  a  powerful 
foe  young  Thornton  could  be  to  his  project,  and  he  was 
desperate. 

"I've  been  up  through  your  country,  Mr.  Thornton. 
I've  been  spending  some  time  at  Fort  Canibas.  I've 
been  posting  myself  generally  on  railroad  and  other 
matters — other  matters!  I  don't  want  to  say  too  much, 
but  I'd  like  to  have  you  run  over  in  your  mind  what 
those  other  matters  might  be.  Now,  you  and  I  can't 
afford  to  be  enemies.  I  got  the  tough  end,  and  I'm 
willing  to  overlook  and  forget.  You  owe  me  a  little 
something.  I  hope  you're  going  to  square  it.  Let  me 
remind  you  that  I'm  a  bad  man  with  my  tongue.  I'm 
free  to  say  it,  I  depend  on  my  tongue  for  what  I  get  out 
of  life." 

It  occurred  to  Harlan  that  this  brazen  threat  referred 
to  the  scandal  of  the  Fort  Canibas  caucus. 

"Bring  them  on,"  he  sneered:  "Ivus  Niles  and  his 
buck  sheep  and  Enoch  Dudley  and  the  rest  of  the  petty 

301 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

rogues  that  you  hired  with  your  corporation  money  to 
defeat  me." 

"You're  on  the  wrong  trail,"  replied  Spinney.  "I 
can  hit  you  harder  than  that,  and  in  a  tenderer  spot." 

He  returned   Harlan's  amazed  stare. 

"I've  been  keeping  my  eyes  open  down  here,  Mr. 
Thornton,  and  I  kept  my  ears  open  up  in  Fort  Canibas." 
His  face  grew  hard.  "D — n  you,  I'll  never  forget 
what  you  did  to  me!  I'm  coming  right  out  open  with 
you.  I'd  like  to  do  you  in  return.  I  can  do  it.  But 
I'll  give  you  a  chance;  it's  for  my  interest  to  do  so, 
providing  you  buy  the  let-off.  If  you  don't  stand  by 
me  in  that  tax  rebate,  I'll  launch  the  story.  What  I 
lose  in  support  I'll  more  than  make  up  in  seeing  you 
squirm.  I'm  pretty  frank,  ain't  I  ?  Well,  I  play  strong 
when  I've  got  enough  trumps  under  my  thumb." 

"Spinney,  I've  had  enough  of  that  kind  of  talk. 
What  do  you  mean  ? " 

"Don't  you  have  the  least  idea?" 

"Not  the  slightest." 

"A  good  bluff !  Well,  I  know  about  the  girl  up  country ! 
See?  It's  a  bad  story  to  be  passed  up  to  another  girl. 
And  I  know  how  to  get  the  details  to  my  friend  Presson's 
daughter  in  time  to  spoil  your  ambition  in  that  quarter. 
Now,  how  about  that?" 

They  were  in  one  corner  of  the  State-House  lobby,  and 
the  presence  of  a  hundred  men  about  them  probably 
saved  Spinney  from  a  beating  there  and  then.  Harlan 
quivered  with  rage.  He  did  not  grasp  the  full  purport 
of  Spinney's  hints.  He  only  understood  that  the  man 
had  grossly  intruded  on  his  private  affairs.  He  could 
not  speak.  He  dared  not  trust  his  voice. 

"  Now  do  you  want  to  let  it  go  further  ? "  inquired  the 
lobbyist.  He  felt  that  the  proximity  of  others  pro 
tected  him. 

"I'll  meet  you  alone — I'll  hunt  you  out,  and  I'll 
302 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

mash  that  face  of  yours  into  pulp!"  choked  the  young 
man,  and  hurried  away  before  he  lost  control  of  himself. 
The  most  he  could  make  out  of  the  episode  was  that 
Spinney  was  seeking  cheap  revenge  by  offering  insult 
to  his  face  under  circumstances  that  prevented  him  from 
retaliating.  He  did  not  understand  the  reference  to 
Clare  Kavanagh.  His  friendship  for  the  girl  was  no 
secret  in  the  north  country.  That  Spinney  had  made 
so  much  account  of  it  by  his  insinuations  was  the 
astonishing  feature,  in  Harlan's  estimation. 

Fortunately  for  his  peace  of  mind  at  that  moment,  he 
was  not  allowed  to  dwell  upon  the  matter.  The  Gov 
ernor's  messenger  came  seeking  him.  He  followed  the 
man  into  the  presence  of  his  Excellency. 

Harlan  had  not  recovered  his  self-possession,  and  the 
Governor  surveyed  him  with  some  interest. 

"Cares  of  State,  young  man?"  he  asked.  "And  the 
session  still  as  calm  as  a  millpond  ? " 

"That  cur  of  a  Spinney  has  just  insulted  me — no 
politics,  sir,  but  just  plain,  personal  insult.  Why,  he 
went  out  of  his  way  to  do  it!" 

"You  make  much  out  of  nothing  if  you  allow  that 
blatherskite  to  disturb  you,"  said  the  Governor,  with 
mild  reproof.  "Pay  no  attention  to  him.  Now  to  my 
business  with  you!  I'd  like  to  have  you  dine  with  me 
this  evening.  I  have  some  serious  matters  to  talk  over 
with  you  alone — and  the  executive  chamber,  here,  is 
no  place  for  a  quiet  talk." 

Harlan  hesitated  a  moment. 

"Have  you  another  engagement?" 

"I  was  to  dine  with  the  Pressons." 

"I  am  sorry  to  ask  you  to  do  it,  my  boy,  but  if  it  is 
merely  a  social  engagement,  will  you  not  beg  to  be 
excused?  I  assure  you  that  my  business  is  such  that 
it  cannot  well  wait  another  twenty-four  hours.  I  am 
ready  to  leave  the  State  House  now.  We'll  ride  past 

303 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

the  Presson  door,  and  I'll  wait  while  you  present  your 
regrets.  Tell  the  fair  Madeleine  that  duty  calls."  He 
smiled.  "  I  hear  interesting  reports,  young  man.  Again 
I  say  I'm  sorry  to  keep  you  from  your  engagement,  but 
Miss  Presson  has  been  near  enough  to  politics  to  under 
stand  what  a  duty-call  means.  Come!" 

The  young  man  flushed.  Reply  failed  him.  He 
followed  the  Governor  to  his  carriage.  It  was  late 
afternoon,  and  the  State  House  was  emptying. 

As  Harlan  ran  up  the  steps  of  the  Presson  house, 
Spinney's  ugly  threat  came  to  him.  The  man  dealt  in 
gossip.  It  was  an  incredible  form  of  attack.  It  was 
slander  of  the  innocent.  He  could  not  forewarn  Made 
leine  Presson.  That  would  be  caddish. 

But  he  felt  a  sudden  panic.  The  impulse  of  admira 
tion;  covetous  desire  to  win  her  away  from  Linton,  a 
desire  pricked  by  his  increasing  dislike  of  that  young 
rival  in  love  and  politics;  the  charm  she  possessed  for 
him  who  had  met  in  her  his  first  woman  of  intellect  and 
culture — all  drove  him  to  her.  The  other  love  was  a 
vague  something  that  troubled  him.  Madeleine  Presson 
was  near  and  visible,  and  he  did  not  dissect  the  emotion 
which  prompted  him  to  seek  her. 

She  came  down  to  the  reception-room.  He  had  sent 
up  an  urgent  request. 

"No,"  she  said,  with  a  smile,  after  she  had  listened, 
" I  think  I'll  put  your  loyalty  to  the  test!  If  I'm  always 
to  be  the  minority  report  in  your  estimation,  Mr. 
Legislator,  it's  time  now  to  find  it  out.  You  put 
Governor  Waymouth  and  your  politics  first,  do  you?" 

"But  you  haven't  given  me  the  right  to  put  you 
first,"  he  returned,  boldly. 

"Just  how  was  I  to  go  about  giving  you  that  right?" 
she  inquired,  with  demure  sarcasm.  "Memorialize  you, 
Mr.  Representative,  or  throw  it  at  you  from  the  House 
gallery,  concealed  in  a  bouquet?" 

3°4 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

In  spite  of  the  waiting  Governor  outside  he  started 
toward  her,  his  arms  outstretched,  his  heart  rushing  to 
his  lips.  Her  taunt — it  seemed  like  that— made  him 
desperate. 

"Madeleine,  I  tried  to  tell  you— -I  know  it  seemed  a 
strange  place,  but  I  couldn't  wait — I  want  to  tell  you 
now — 

She  eluded  him,  and  stopped  him  with  a  word.  He  was 
not  impetuous  enough  to  persist. 

"  Oh,  you  master  of  the  art  of  love-making ! "  she  cried. 
Pique  mingled  with  mirth  in  her  tone.  "  First,  you  pro 
pose  to  me  in  the  midst  of  the  mob;  then  you  propose 
to  me,  bursting  in  like  a  messenger  -  boy,  and  yonder 
the  Governor  of  this  State,  with  anxious  head  out  of 
his  carriage  window,  scowling  because  you  don't  come 
along!  Admirable  occasions  for  pledging  passion  and 
life-long  devotion!  Dear  Harlan,  your  ingenuity  must 
be  puzzled  by  this  time.  I'll  make  a  suggestion:  fly 
over  our  house  in  a  balloon  and  shout  your  declaration 
down  the  chimney.  I'll  sit  in  the  fireplace  from  two 
to  four,  afternoons." 

"I'll  not  be  put  off ! "  he  cried. 

"You  shall  be  put  out,  and  I'll  do  it!"  Laughing,  she 
took  him  by  his  arm  and  led  him  out  into  the  hall. 
Protesting,  he  went.  "I  have  some  respect  for  the 
feelings  of  our  Governor  on  a  chilly  afternoon,  even  if 
you  haven't.  You  are  excused  from  our  little  dinner. 
Go,  now,  Harlan.  I'm  serious." 

"There's  one  thing  you  have  given  me,"  he  said,  red, 
half-angry,  and  thoroughly  subdued,  "and  that's  the 
promise  that  I  may  take  you  to  the  legislative  ball. 
That's  to-morrow  night — and  we'll  see!"  He  bolted 
out  upon  the  steps. 

"Delightful!"  she  cried  after  him.  "What  an  oppor 
tunity  the  stage  of  City  Hall  will  afford  for  another!" 
She  shut  the  door  before  he  could  reply. 

3°5 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

The  Governor  rallied  him  a  bit  on  his  disturbed  looks 
as  they  rode  on,  but  Harlan  was  in  no  mood  to  relish 
jokes  on  that  subject. 

Governor  Waymouth  had  no  other  guests  at  dinner. 
He  did  not  broach  his  business  until  they  were  seated 
in  the  little  parlor  of  the  modest  mansion.  The  room 
had  been  converted  into  a  study. 

"To  date  the  session  has  hardly  been  what  you 
hoped — perhaps  that's  too  strong  a  word — what  you 
expected  it  would  be,  has  it?"  inquired  the  Governor, 
his  earnestness  showing  that  he  was  ready  to  begin. 
He  did  not  wait  for  a  reply. 

"Matters  have  run  in  the  old  rut.  Every  one  seems 
to  be  satisfied,  eh — even  the  radicals  in  the  prohibition 
movement  ?  Isn't  that  so  ?  Their  men  have  introduced 
some  new  legislation,  adding  on  more  penalties  that  no 
officer  will  ever  enforce — but  the  mere  legislation  satis 
fies  'em.  Everybody  satisfied,  apparently."  The  Gov 
ernor  uttered  that  last  sentence  in  meditative  manner. 
Then  he  straightened,  and  slapped  his  hand  upon  his 
chair-arm  so  suddenly  that  Harlan  started.  "But  I 
am  not  satisfied !"  he  shouted.  "I  have  let  them  run 
along.  I  have  let  them  introduce  their  bills.  I  have 
waited  for  the  lawmakers  of  this  State  and  for  the 
people  to  take  some  initiative.  I  gave  them  their  call 
last  fall  in  my  letter.  I  hoped  that  some  part  of  this 
State  was  awake.  But  those  few  who  have  shown 
some  signs  of  civic  interest  have  only  pecked  around  the 
edges  of  reform.  Nothing  has  been  done,  Harlan 
Thornton.  Not  one  sweeping  bill  has  been  introduced. 
I  have  waited,  hoping.  I  hoped  the  people  would  arise 
and  help  me  with  this  burden.  But  I've  waited  in  vain. 
There  are  only  two  more  days  in  this  session  allowed 
for  the  introduction  of  new  business. 

"My  boy,  I  talked  first  with  you  about  my  becoming 
Governor  of  this  State.  That's  why  I'm  talking  first 

306 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

with  you  about  this  matter.  I  shall  call  every  man  of 
this  legislature  to  me  and  talk  with  him  privately,  and 
in  that  work  I  want  your  assistance.  I  want  you  to 
bring  them  to  me.  I  called  you  here  to-night  because 
to-morrow  night  folly  and  fashion  will  rule  all  in  this 
city,  and  I  must  be  there  with  the  rest.  Let  me  tell  you, 
my  boy,  that  when  the  men  of  this  legislature  awake, 
after  that  night  of  frivolity,  it  will  be  to  open  their  eyes 
on  some  serious  business.  Not  one  word  about  what  I 
intend  to  do  until  then.  The  session  has  been  a  very 
sweet  cake  till  now — let  the  ball  sugar-coat  it!  There'll 
be  bitter  eating  provided  day  after  to-morrow!" 

He  wraited  a  moment,  recovering  from  sudden  passion. 

"Ah,"  he  said,  gentle  once  more,  "that  sounds  like 
senile  raving.  Pardon  me.  But  while  I've  waited  for 
the  politicians  of  this  State  to  show  some  signs  of 
decency,  waiting  in  vain,  I've  been  swallowing  back  a 
lot  of  bitterness.  No  more  of  it !  To  our  business  now. 
I  want  you  to  know  what  is  coming.  I  depend  on  you, 
as  I  have  depended  before,  to  be  my  master  of  cere 
monies — and  rather  grim  ceremonies  they  will  be.  For 
I  have  prepared  several  bills.  You  will  introduce  the 
House  measures.  I  can  depend  on  Senator  Borden,  from 
my  county,  for  what  I  choose  to  have  originate  in  the 
Senate.  They  are  bills  that  will  put  our  party  and  this 
State  to  the  test  of  honesty.  It's  strange,  isn't  it,  that 
what  sounds  so  innocent  should  be  so  bitter?" 

He  opened  a  drawer  in  his  desk.  He  took  out  papers 
and  spread  them  before  him.  He  selected  one. 

"Abolishment  of  fees  (a  blow  at  every  grafting  office 
holder)  ;  no  more  railroad  passes  for  public  officials ; 
a  bipartisan  tax  commission  that  shall  haul  the  rich 
dodger  out  into  the  open — -all  these  matters  are  covered 
here.  But  into  your  hands,  young  man,  I  put  the  one 
measure  that  is  to  be  the  most  savage  test  of  our  honesty. 
I  have  put  the  most  thought  on  it.  Every  lawyer  in  this 
21  3°7 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

State  will  try  to  find  a  flaw  in  it.  But  if  I  know  anything 
about  constitutional  law  it  is  framed  to  beat  them  all. 
I'll  not  bother  to  read  it  to  you.  Carry  it  away,  and 
guard  it  and  study  it." 

He  held  it  up,  waving  it.  His  heart  was  plainly  full. 
He  talked  as  one  addressing  the  careless  multitude — 
and  talking,  at  the  same  time,  to  himself. 

"You  may  divine  what  it  is.  It  handles  the  great 
topic  in  our  State.  The  source  of  dishonor,  corruption, 
perjury,  and  hypocrisy!  The  prohibitory  law!  Let  me 
tell  what  it  will  do  when  it  has  been  enacted  into  law. 
It  will  make  the  Governor  of  this  State  the  grand  high 
sheriff  to  enforce  personally  and  actively  this  one  law; 
it's  in  our  constitution,  and  the  State  should  enforce 
its  own.  He  will  have  all  the  resources  of  the  State 
treasury  behind  him.  He  shall  have  for  the  first  time 
PROHIBITION.  Prohibition  enforced,  prohibition  as  the 
statutes  have  ordered  it,  prohibition  in  actuality  instead 
of  its  pretence.  The  pretence  has  satisfied  the  rum- 
sellers  who  sold,  the  rum-drinkers  who  drank,  and  the 
radicals  who  have  boasted  of  the  law,  for  all  have  got 
out  of  it  what  results  were  desired :  appetite  was  catered 
to,  vanity  was  satisfied,  and  graft  engendered  for  the 
benefit  of  the  office-holding  class. 

"I'm  not  going  to  predict  what  I  think  will  be  the 
result  of  this  enforcement — not  now.  What  I  propose 
to  do  as  an  honest  man  is  to  put  the  prohibitory  pro 
fession  of  this  State  to  the  test.  When  this  is  law, 
Luke  Presson  cannot  pose  as  an  honest  man  and  con 
tinue  to  sell  liquor  to  all -comers,  he  cannot  bribe 
sheriff  and  police;  I'll  send  my  own  men  to  smash 
every  bottle  in  his  place,  and  I'll  put  him  into  just  as 
dark  a  cell  as  any  Cheap  John  who  peddles  poison  from 
his  boot-leg.  The  rich  man  must  stand  on  the  level  of 
the  poor  man.  It's  the  test  of  our  State's  honesty — 
that  bill  is— and  it  shall  be  called  'The  Thornton  Law.'  " 

308 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

He  arose,  and  placed  the  document  in  Harlan's  hand. 

The  young  man  received  it  rather  gingerly.  He  held 
it  with  somewhat  the  appearance  of  one  who  has  the 
custody  of  a  loaded  weapon.  His  face  expressed  con 
sternation  rather  than  appreciation. 

"  Study  the  measure.  I  think  you'll  find  it  interesting. 
Introduce  it  in  the  House  day  after  to-morrow.  Our 
gallant  lawmakers  will  be  sleepy  after  the  ball.  That 
will  wake  'em  up."  The  old  man's  nostrils  dilated. 
He  had  the  air  of  one  who  saw  battle  ahead  and  yearned 
for  it. 

"Move  that  it  be  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Tem 
perance,"  the  Governor  went  on.  "The  fight  will  be 
on  then  and  there,  just  as  soon  as  they  get  their  breath. 
They'll  want  to  get  it  before  a  safer  gang!  Let  'em 
refer  it  to  the  Judiciary  Committee  if  they've  got  the 
votes  to  do  so.  I'm  not  afraid  they'll  find  any  con 
stitutional  flaws.  And  that  first  vote  will  give  me  a 
line  on  the  general  situation.  I'll  find  out  just  what 
men  need  to  have  the  gospel  put  to  'em  straight!" 

"Governor,"  stammered  the  young  man,  still  holding 
the  document  at  arm's-length,  "wouldn't  it  be — don't 
you  think  a — a — some  representative  who  has  had 
more  experience  than  I  should  be  the  one  to  see  this 
bill  through?" 

"  I  want  that  bill  sponsored  by  a  man  that  I  can  trust 
absolutely.  I'm  sure  of  you,  Harlan!  When  once  it  is 
introduced  I'll  see  that  you  have  plenty  of  help  before 
the  committee  and  on  the  floor." 

It  had  come  like  a  thunderclap  on  a  moonlit  night. 
It  was  sudden  tempest  prefaced  by  the  lull  of  perfect 
calm.  It  was  the  signal  to  combat  sounded  when  peace 
seemed  assured.  The  young  man  perceived  now  how 
much  of  his  early  zeal  had  deserted  him.  He  shrank 
from  the  task  the  Governor  had  assigned  to  him.  It  wras 
a  blow  that  was  aimed  at  the  tenderest  point  of  his  own 

309 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

party;  it  was  obliging  the  party,  as  the  dominant  power, 
to  thrust  upon  the  mass  of  the  people  the  radical  execu 
tion  of  a  law  which  public  opinion  secretly  opposed — 
that  opinion  even  slyly  welcoming  the  breach  of  it.  And 
Governor  Waymouth  had  emphasized  what  that  new 
measure  meant  by  citing  the  name  of  Luke  Presson. 
It  set  the  situation  before  Harlan  in  a  flash.  He  was 
summoned  to  carry  out  his  pledge  of  loyalty  to  Governor 
Waymouth  by  attacking  the  pet  policy  of  nullification 
that  kept  his  own  party  off  the  shoals  to  which  extreme 
radicalism  would  surely  drive  it.  The  first  man  who 
would  be  hit — both  as  chairman  of  the  party  State 
Committee  and  in  his  personal  interests — would  be  the 
man  whose  daughter  he  was  seeking.  Harlan  wondered 
how  that  marriage  proposal  would  sound,  either  on  the 
heels  or  on  the  eve  of  the  introduction  of  "the  Thornton 
bill." 

His  uncertainty  showed  so  plainly  in  his  face  that  the 
Governor  walked  around  his  table  and  scrutinized  him 
closely. 

"My  boy,"  he  asked,  "has  the  enemy  captured  you 
while  you've  been  resting  on  your  arms?  Remember, 
there  are  slick  and  specious  ways  of  making  the  wrong 
seem  right  in  politics!  I  hope  you  haven't  been  tam 
pered  with!" 

For  a  guilty  moment  Harlan  remembered  the  admoni 
tions  of  Madeleine  Presson.  He  was  promptly  ashamed 
that  they  had  come  to  his  mind  when  the  Governor 
spoke  his  fears. 

"I'm  going  to  tell  you  just  why  I'm  a  bit  slow  in  this 
matter,"  he  said,  manfully.  "It  may  seem  a  trivial 
reason  to  you,  Governor  Waymouth.  I  stopped  to 
wonder  how  it  would  affect  my  friendship  with  the 
Presson  family  if  I  should  introduce  that  bill." 

"Oh,  I  see  how  the  land  lies!  You  can  understand 
now  how  old  I  am — old  and  cold  with  all  the  romance 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

burned  out  of  me!  I'd  forgotten  that  there's  anything 
except  politics  left  in  the  world.  So —  He  paused, 
beaming  kindly  on  the  young  man,  and  pursing  his  lips 
ready  for  the  jocose  supposition  that  Harlan  foresaw 
and  anticipated. 

"No,"  he  declared,  flushing,  "it  isn't  that  way. 
It  hasn't  gone  that  far,  Governor.  I  ask  your  pardon 
for  mentioning  my  personal  affairs,  especially  an  affair 
of  this  sort.  But  I  should  be  very  sorry  to  break  off  my 
friendship  with  the  Pressons." 

The  Governor  went  back  to  his  chair,  and  sat  down 
in  it.  He  wrinkled  his  brows  and  took  a  long  survey 
of  his  embarrassed  caller. 

"I'm  afraid  I  spoke  of  the  case  of  our  mutual  friend 
Presson  in  rather  harsh  terms.  It  would  not  work  like 
that.  Of  course,  he  would  bow  to  the  inevitable  if  such 
a  law  were  passed.  But  if  it  becomes  a  personal  matter 
in  any  respect,  Mr.  Thornton,  do  you  believe  that  any 
member  of  Presson's  family  would  be  offended  if  Presson 
were  made  to  obey  the  law?" 

"  Well,  if  he  persisted  against  the  new  law,  it  would  be 
a  pretty  hard  position  for  any  fair  person  to  defend," 
admitted  the  young  man. 

"I  think  we  may  depend  on  it  that  this  young  person, 
admittedly  '  fair ' — at  my  age  I  can  be  allowed  to  bestow 
that  compliment — will  respect  your  integrity.  I  do  not 
command  you  to  do  the  service — I  cannot  do  that. 
But  I  shall  be  disappointed  if  you  allow  personal  reasons 
to  interfere  with  your  public  duties.  I  have  depend 
ed  on  you  to  do  it.  I  have  only  a  few  that  I  can 
trust. " 

At  that  instant,  in  the  presence  of  this  man  who  had 
sacrificed  so  much,  Harlan  felt  that  his  own  interests 
were  too  petty  for  consideration. 

He  put  the  document  into  his  pocket. 

"Forgive  me  for  hesitating,  Governor  Waymouth. 
3" 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

I'm  afraid  I'll  never  make  a  very  good  public  servant. 
But  I'll  try  to  hold  my  eyes  straight  ahead  after  this." 

"Keep  the  paper  in  your  pocket.  Think  it  all  over. 
You're  at  the  place  every  man  reaches.  What  you 
want  to  do  and  what  you  ought  to  do  split  very  sharply 
sometimes.  I'll  let  you  decide.  I  have  no  more  to  say." 

Harlan  walked  back  to  the  hotel,  trying  to  adjust 
himself  to  this  new  phase  of  the  question.  Once  more 
he  had  been  called  upon  to  lead  the  charge  of  the  forlorn 
hope.  He  had  not  the  same  thrill  of  zealous  loyalty  as 
before.  He  was  a  little  hurt  because  the  Governor  had 
made  the  affairs  of  his  heart  of  so  small  importance. 
An  old  man's  austerity  could  not  understand,  perhaps, 
but  nevertheless  Harlan  felt  that  he  was  entitled  to  some 
consideration.  He  had  not  acquired  an  old  man's  calm 
poise — he  was  not  entirely  willing  to  put  politics  ahead 
of  everything  else,  now  that  he  found  there  were  so 
many  other  things  in  life.  Was  it  not  true  that  the 
mass  preferred  to  pay  court  to  high  ideals  in  the  abstract, 
and  bitterly  resented  any  attempt  by  sincere  individuals 
to  enforce  the  actual?  He  understood  rather  vaguely 
that  he  would  be  applauded  by  the  radicals — he  had  met 
their  leaders  and  did  not  like  them — he  would  get  the 
applause  the  mob  gives  to  "a  well-meaning  fellow," 
but  more  than  all  he  would  be  sneered  at  behind  his 
back  as  "a  crank  trying  to  reorganize  human  nature," 
and  therefore  to  be  shunned.  He  had  been  mingling 
intimately  with  the  chief  men  of  the  State;  he  knew 
what  kind  of  comment  they  had  for  others.  Most  of 
all,  he  knew  that  the  mild  applause  of  the  mob  would 
not  be  loud  enough  to  drown  out  those  familiar  voices 
nearest  him — he  had  heard  those  voices  many  times 
before:  there  was  his  grandfather,  there  was  Luke 
Presson,  there  were  the  political  associates  with  whom 
he  had  already  begun  to  train  on  the  basis  of  compromise. 

There  was  Luke  Presson's  daughter! 

312 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

He  strode  into  the  lobby  of  the  hotel,  his  face  gloomy 
and  his  thoughts  dark.  Linton  stepped  forward  to 
meet  him,  hat  and  overcoat  on.  It  was  evident  that 
he  had  been  waiting.  The  sight  of  him  did  not  improve 
Harlan's  temper.  From  the  first  day  of  the  session  they 
had  eyed  each  other  malevolently.  They  had  bristled 
at  every  possible  point  of  contact.  Linton's  last  exploit 
had  been  a  speech  favoring  the  railroad  tax  rebate,  a 
speech  in  which  he  scored  those  who  opposed  it  as 
enemies  to  the  development  of  the  State.  The  fervor 
of  his  eloquence  had  made  even  Harlan  Thornton  doubt, 
sourly,  whether  a  constitution  that  was  framed  before 
the  exigencies  of  progress  were  dreamed  of  should  be 
too  rigidly  construed.  That  was  still  another  point 
where  he  and  his  grandfather  disagreed,  and  the  cogent 
speech  of  Linton  had  been  the  cause  of  further  dispute 
between  them.  The  Duke  was  disgusted  because  his 
grandson  could  be  so  scrupulous  that  he  could  not  be 
progressive.  For  Harlan  the  straight  path  of  rectitude 
was  fringed  with  signs  set  there  by  friends,  every  sign 
inscribed  "Fool."  From  the  first,  Linton  had  seemed 
to  aggravate  his  difficulties,  politically  and  personally. 

"Can  you  give  me  a  few  minutes  of  your  time?"  he 
asked,  stiffly. 

"  If  it's  business,  and  important,  yes,"  returned  Harlan, 
scowling. 

"I  should  not  bother  you  with  anything  except 
business.  And  as  this  is  of  a  private  nature,  I  must 
ask  you  to  invite  me  to  your  room." 

Harlan  led  the  way  to  the  elevator. 

Linton  did  not  remove  his  overcoat  when  they  were 
closeted  together.  He  stood  with  hat  in  his  hand. 

"It  may  surprise  you  to  learn  that  my  business 
concerns  Miss  Presson  and  the  legislative  ball  to 
morrow  evening,"  began  Linton,  but  Harlan  indignantly 
broke  in. 


"You  can  have  no  possible  business  with  me,  sir, 
in  which  Miss  Presson's  name  may  be  mentioned. 
Don't  you  use  her  name — not  in  any  way.  Do  you 
understand  ? " 

"I  understand  this:  I  know  what  I'm  talking  about 
and  exactly  why  I've  come  here,  and  you're  going  to 
listen.  Miss  Presson  has  accepted  your  escort  to  the 
ball  to-morrow  evening.  Don't  you  know,  Thornton, 
why  you  can't  take  Madeleine  Presson  into  public,  this 
whole  State  looking  on?  I  hate  to  say  any  more  than 
that.  I  don't  think  it's  necessary  for  me  to  say  any 
more  than  that! "  His  face  was  hard,  his  tone  accusing. 

"  I  tell  you,  you  have  no  right  to  mention  Miss  Presson 
to  me!"  cried  the  other. 

"I'm  taking  it  on  myself,  and  I'm  giving  you  a  chance 
by  doing  it,"  retorted  Linton.  "The  story  is  bad 
enough  now.  But  you'll  be  drummed  out  of  this  State 
if  you  insult  an  innocent  girl  in  the  way  you  plan  to  do." 

In  his  indignation  Thornton  had  been  slow  to  grasp  the 
fact  that  his  rival  was  making  hints  that  both  affronted 
and  threatened.  His  conscience  accused  him  of  nothing. 
He  felt  the  crackle  of  paper  in  his  breast-pocket.  He 
promptly  suspected  that  Linton  had  gleaned  a  hint  of 
the  proposed  legislation  which  would  involve  Madeleine's 
father. 

He  tried  to  control  his  anger. 

"Will  you  kindly  explain  to  me  by  just  what  right 
you  say  this,"  he  sneered — "except,  possibly,  that  you're 
jealous  because  Miss  Presson  chose  me  as  her  escort." 

"I  have  a  right  as  a  friend  of  her  mother,  if  nothing 
else!  I  am  keeping  this  thing  as  still  as  I  can  for  your 
sake,  for  in  this  case  protecting  you  means  protecting 
her.  I  don't  want  to  say  any  more!  But  sudden 
illness  must  prevent  you  from  accompanying  Miss 
Presson  into  public  at  that  ball." 

Harlan  beat  a  palm  upon  his  own  breast. 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

"I've  had  enough  of  this,  Linton.  You  tell  me  what 
you're  driving  at." 

It  was  plain  that  Linton  hated  to  be  more  explicit. 
This  culprit  did  not  seem  to  quail  before  vague  accusa 
tion,  as  he  had  expected  him  to  do.  He  was  faced  by  a 
young  man  whose  face  \vas  lighted  by  wrath,  curiosity, 
and  kindred  emotions  that  wrere  obviously  not  those  of 
guilt. 

"Let  me  say  this  in  my  own  defence,"  pleaded  Linton. 
"Spinney  was  going  right  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Presson  with 
the  story.  I  got  it  from  him  almost  by  accident.  We 
were  talking  over  our  railroad  bill  this  evening,  and  he 
mentioned  your  stand.  Then  he  out  with  the  story  that 
he  picked  up  when  he  was  in  Fort  Canibas.  I  do  not 
listen  to  gossip,  Mr. Thornton, but  it  is  plain  that  Spinney 
has  facts.  I  have  inquired  in  a  prudent  way  of  other 
men  from  your  section.  He  has  the  story,  but  what 
they  say  confirms  it." 

Harlan  listened,  his  blank  amazement  depriving  him 
of  speech. 

"I've  said  enough  now,  haven't  I?"  asked  Linton, 
significantly. 

"No,  by  God,  you  haven't!"  shouted  the  other, 
coming  out  of  his  lethargy  of  astonishment.  The 
recollection  of  Spinney's  sinister  hints  came  to  him. 
"What  do  you  mean?" 

"I  mean  that  a  man  who  will  fool  and  throw  over  a 
girl  in  a  way  that  drives  her  away  from  home  and 
friends  is  no  fit  escort — 

He  got  no  further.  He  knew  a  thoroughly  maddened 
and  dangerous  man  when  he  saw  one.  He  stepped  back 
when  Harlan  dashed  at  him,  and  Thornton  halted  of  his 
own  accord.  After  a  time  he  calmed  himself  enough 
to  speak. 

"I'll  not  begin  with  you,  Linton.  I'll  begin  with  the 
man  who  started  that  damnable  lie.  Oh,  that — that — ! " 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

He  flailed  his  arms  about  his  head,  unable  to  express 
himself.  "  You've  been  lied  to.  You  don't  know  any 
better  than  to  say  that.  If  you  hadn't  been  jealous 
you'd  never  have  brought  the  story  to  me.  I'll  make 
allowances,"  he  raved  on;  "but  the  man  who  started 
that  story  will  swallow  it  with  teeth  and  blood  mixed." 
He  stamped  about  the  room.  It  was  so  horrible  that 
he  could  not  grasp  the  enormity  of  the  lie  all  at 
once. 

Linton  was  impressed  but  not  routed.  He  waited  till 
Harlan  was  quieter. 

"  I  hope  you'll  get  it  straightened  out,"  he  said,  coldly. 
"  But  with  a  story  like  that  extant,  of  course  you'll  see 
the  wisdom  of  the  course  I've  suggested.  You  cannot 
afford  to  drag  Miss  Presson's  name  into  your  affair." 

"Into  my  affair!  You  dirty  pup,  do  you  dare  to 
intimate — are  you  lunatic  enough  to  take  stock  in  any 
such  story  about  me?" 

The  epithets  sent  the  color  into  Linton'u  face.  But 
he  restrained  himself. 

"  Your  own  grandfather  had  to  take  you  in  hand  about 
the  matter  before  you  left  Fort  Canibas,  Thornton.  I 
heard  him  say  that  much  myself.  He  gave  no  details. 
I  don't  care  for  any.  I  merely  came  to  you  to  bring  a 
hint  as  to  what  you  ought  to  do.  You  don't  seem  to  take 
the  hint.  If  you  haven't  got  manliness  enough  yourself 
to  keep  away  from  Miss  Presson  until  this  story — well, 
put  it  mildly,  and  say  until  this  story  is  run  down — then 
I  propose  to  insist  that  you  do  so." 

"  Look  here,  Linton,  I've  usually  got  pretty  good 
control  of  myself.  I'm  trying  to  hold  myself  in  now — 
trying  as  hard  as  I  can.  What  you  have  told  me  is  a 
lie — a  damnable  lie.  See?  I  say  it  calmly."  He  was 
quivering.  "  You  don't  know  what  you're  talking  about. 
I  haven't  the  patience  to  explain  to  you.  It's  none  of 
your  business.  You  keep  away  from  me.  Now  don't 

316 


A    GOVERNOR    AND    A    MAID 

put  any  more  strain  on  my  self-control — in  God's  name, 
don't  do  it,  Linton!" 

"  I  am  making  no  secret  of  my  hopes  in  regard  to 
Miss  Presson,"  stated  Linton,  firmly.  "I  have  been 
waiting  until  I  could  offer  her  what  she  has  been  accus 
tomed  to.  You  have  the  advantage  of  me  in  money, 
Thornton.  But  you're  welcome  to  that !  My  hopes  give 
me  the  right  to  guard  her  from  scandal.  I  insist  that 
you  relieve  her  of  your  presence  to-morrow  evening!" 

Harlan,  shaken,  gray  with  passion,  his  teeth  set  over 
his  lower  lip,  rushed  to  the  door  and  threw  it  open. 

"  D — n  you,  you  get  on  the  outside !"  he  panted.  "  I'm 
in  the  mood  to  kill  you!" 

Linton  went.  By  his  visit  and  his  warning  he  had 
thrown  a  sop  to  his  conscience.  He  had  approached 
Harlan  Thornton  with  something  like  desperation. 
Under  his  calmness  he  had  long-hidden,  consuming 
passion  for  Madeleine  Presson — a  love  that  had  grown 
through  the  years,  and  now  waited  a  fitting  time  of 
expression  and  the  endorsement  of  assured  position. 
If  he  had  any  doubts  of  the  truth  of  the  shameful  story 
he  had  brought  he  concealed  those  doubts — he  would 
not  admit  them  to  himself.  He  proposed  to  win  the 
girl.  He  chose  any  weapons  that  would  rout  the 
interloper. 

"  I  warn  you  that  I  shall  protect  her,"  he  said,  from 
the  corridor. 

"Take  a  warning  from  me,  too:  you  get  into  my 
affairs,  and  you'll  find  hell  fires  cooler!" 

"Your  affairs  do  seem  to  have  that  flavor,"  declared 
Linton,  walking  away. 

Thornton  hurried  to  the  headquarters  that  the  cor 
porations  maintained  in  the  hotel  for  Spinney.  Spinney 
was  not  there.  He  ran  back  to  his  room  and  telephoned 
to  the  clerk  of  the  hotel.  He  was  informed  that  Mr. 
Spinney  had  gone  away  for  a  few  days. 


It  was  late,  but  he  threw  on  his  coat  and  hastened 
up  street  to  the  Presson  home.  The  windows  were 
dark.  He  did  not  have  the  assurance  to  arouse  the 
family  at  that  time  of  night. 

By  that  time,  walking  in  the  crisp  air  of  the  winter 
night,  he  had  soothed,  somewhat,  his  fever  of  anger, 
sorrow,  and  shame. 

Calmer,  he  had  thoughts  only  for  the  bitter  wrong 
that  had  been  done  Clare  Kavanagh.  Somehow  it 
seemed  that  all  were  leagued  against  her — and  him! 
Memory  of  her  unselfishness,  her  simple  faith  in  him, 
her  abnegation,  her  true,  little- woman  trust  in  his 
career — it  all  rushed  upon  him.  For  a  time  he  was 
almost  ashamed  to  face  what  memory  brought  to  him. 
Then  manfully  he  set  himself  to  read  his  heart — at  least, 
he  tried  to.  In  the  end,  hidden  in  his  room,  he  wept — 
honest  tears  of  a  strong  man  conscious  that  he  was 
unable  by  his  strength  to  hold  disaster  from  an  innocent. 
Even  his  attempt  to  find  the  rogue,  Spinney,  was  futile. 
He  wept,  thinking  of  Clare  Kavanagh — exiled  from  her 
home,  bravely  solving  her  problem  of  life  alone.  He 
went  to  sleep  thinking  of  Clare  Kavanagh. 

It  was  fortunate  for  his  self-respect  that  she  filled 
his  mind  so  completely  at  that  moment.  Otherwise  the 
reflection  that  he  had  led  himself  by  degrees  to  covet  the 
brains  and  beauty  of  Madeleine  Presson  would  have 
convinced  him  that  in  his  relations  with  women  he  was 
either  fool  or  knave. 

Youth,  untried  in  the  ways  of  women  and  the  wiles 
of  loving  and  the  everlasting  problem  of  what  the  heart 
most  truly  desires,  has  wondered  and  wept  the  long 
ages  through! 


CHAPTER  XXV 

WOMEN,    AND    ONE    WOMAN 

HE  next  day  brought  the  reign  of  woman. 
That  festal  day  in  mid-session  which  pre 
ceded  the  legislative  ball  had  been  made 
woman's  field-day  by  long  custom.  The 
politicians  arranged  the  programme  in 
order  to  bunch  events:  for  the  women 
demanded  that  they  be  heard  each  session  on  the  suf 
frage  question;  and  the  women  pleaded  for  one  oppor 
tunity  to  show  their  best  gowns  in  parade  for  fashion's 
sake.  So  the  politicians  made  one  bite  at  the  cherry; 
"  took  a  double  dose  and  had  it  over  with,"  as  Thelismer 
Thornton  ungraciously  expressed  it.  Frivolity  was  com 
bined  with  feminine  fervor  on  the  suffrage  question. 
One  element  was  invited  to  neutralize  the  other.  The 
politicians  could  endure  the  combination  better  than  they 
could  face  each  faction  separately.  The  advocates  of 
suffrage  made  their  plea  while  their  sisters  promenaded 
the  State  House  corridors  to  the  music  of  the  band. 
The  festival  spirit  dominated. 

The  members  of  the  Judiciary  Committee  wore  fresh 
waistcoats,  pinks  in  their  buttonholes,  and  a  genial  air 
— and  had  not  the  least  idea  of  granting  the  suffragists 
anything  except  a  benignant  hearing.  The  report  of 
"ought  not  to  pass"  was  a  foregone  conclusion. 

But  there  were  potted  palms  in  the  lobbies,  decora 
tions  in  the  rotunda,  and  masses  of  flowers  in  the  House 
chamber  which  was  given  over  to  the  hearing.  And 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

sweet  music  softened  legislative  asperities.  The  women 
asked,  smiling.  The  men  refused,  smiling. 

The  federated  women's  clubs  of  the  State  had  the  suf 
frage  matter  in  their  keeping.  The  delegates  were  not 
hard-faced  women  clutching  umbrellas.  They  were  the 
strictly  modern  suffragists — radiant  matrons,  fresh-com- 
plexioned  girls,  women  who  led  in  culture  and  fashion  in 
their  respective  communities. 

At  the  previous  session  the  Legislative  Committee  had 
asked  that  the  delegation  of  women  be  restricted  to  the 
usual  number  of  persons  that  appeared  at  legislative 
hearings.  When  a  dozen  came  with  their  petitions  and 
arguments  the  Committee  blandly  stated  that  there 
seemed  to  be  no  general  demand  in  the  State  for  woman's 
suffrage — witness  the  attendance  of  women  interested ! 

This  year  the  women  proposed  to  disprove  that  as 
sumption.  Every  woman's  literary,  social,  art,  and 
economic  club  in  the  State  sent  two  delegates.  The 
State  was  raked  for  women,  even  the  schools  were  ran 
sacked.  At  ten  o'clock  in  the  forenoon  the  State  House 
was  packed  and  women  were  still  crowding  in.  The  gal 
leries,  aisles,  and  standing-room  of  House  and  Senate 
were  choked  with  silks,  furs,  and  feathers  which  deco 
rated  the  beauty  and  brains  of  the  State. 

The  routine  was  hurried  through.  Callous  man,  gasp 
ing  for  breath,  wanted  to  escape. 

The  few  in  the  lobby  who  dared  to  smoke  soon  hid 
their  cigars  under  their  coat-tails  and  departed  to  the 
hotels.  The  cuspidors  were  hidden.  Gay  frocks  swept 
cigar  stubs  out  of  sight. 

When  the  members  of  the  Judiciary  Committee  at 
tempted  to  enter  the  House  chamber  to  conduct  the  hear 
ing  on  suffrage,  it  required  full  ten  minutes  of  persuasive 
eloquence  and  courteous  pushing  on  the  part  of  the  mes 
sengers  to  break  the  jam  of  women  that  filled  the  door 
and  packed  the  lobby  floor  adjacent.  The  fair  lobbyists 

320 


WOMEN,    AND    ONE    WOMAN 

did  not  want  to  give  up  even  that  vantage-point  in  order 
to  admit  the  men  who  were  to  listen.  And  after  the 
committee  had  managed  to  wriggle  its  way  in  single  file 
to  the  platform  they  had  not  the  heart  to  expel  the 
women  who  were  occupying  their  chairs.  They  gal 
lantly  stood  in  a  row  against  the  rear  wall  of  the  Speak 
er's  alcove  and  listened  to  the  petitioners — each  woman 
allowed  two  minutes!  Not  one  member  of  the  legisla 
ture,  outside  the  committee,  heard.  It  would  have  been 
an  ungallant  man,  indeed,  who  did  not  surrender  his 
place  in  the  chamber  to  a  woman  who  had  come  to 
present  her  cause.  So  the  women  amiably  listened  to 
themselves,  and  the  committee  listened  to  them  in  all 
politeness,  and  both  sides  understood  that  it  was  only  a 
genial  social  diversion  out  of  which  nothing  would  come. 
In  that  gathering  a  suffragette  would  have  been  squelched 
by  her  own  sex. 

Harlan  Thornton  came  to  the  State  House  early. 

Morning  had  brought  him  wiser  counsel.  He  felt  no 
impulse  to  rush  to  the  Presson  house.  He  wondered 
now  what  he  would  have  said  if  he  had  gained  access 
to  Madeleine  Presson  the  night  before.  The  astounding 
insult  by  Herbert  Linton  troubled  him  less.  It  had  been 
a  jealous  outburst — Linton's  confession  of  his  love  for 
the  girl  had  revealed  his  animus.  Probably  Linton  re 
gretted  it — in  Harlan's  calmer  mood  he  trusted  that  such 
was  the  case.  Conscious  of  his  innocence,  it  did  not 
seem  to  Harlan  that  any  man  would  dare  to  deal  further 
in  such  outrageous  slander  after  what  had  been  said  in 
their  interview. 

Harlan  was  one  of  the  first  to  escape  from  the  House 
through  the  press  of  women.  There  were  too  many  of 
them.  Officious  gentlemen  had  begun  to  introduce  him 
to  wives  and  daughters  and  friends.  He  was  not  shy, 
but  the  presence  of  so  many  women — chattering,  viva 
cious,  exchanging  repartee,  challenging  retort  from  him, 

321 


was  disquieting.  He  made  his  way  to  his  committee- 
room.  It  was  in  a  far  corner  of  the  building  and  was 
quiet.  He  had  not  been  able  to  inspect  the  bill  that 
Governor  Waymouth  had  placed  in  his  hands.  He  de 
termined  to  put  behind  himself  for  a  time  the  presence 
of  women  and  the  thoughts  of  women — even  those 
thoughts  which  had  so  occupied  him  the  night  be 
fore. 

There  was  no  one  in  the  committee-room.  The  State 
House  holiday  had  attracted  his  associates.  He  exam 
ined  the  measure  that  he  was  expected  to  sponsor. 

It  provided  for  a  commission  of  three  men  to  be  ap 
pointed  by  the  Governor  and  to  remain  under  his  direct 
control — a  bipartisan  board.  These  men  were  to  ap 
point  special  deputies  to  any  number  desired.  To  any 
county,  city,  or  town  these  deputies  were  to  be  dis 
patched  when  it  became  apparent  that  police  or  sheriffs 
were  lax  or  dishonest  in  enforcing  the  prohibitory  law. 
No  limits  were  placed  on  the  number  of  these  men 
empowered  to  kill  saloon's  and  put  liquor-peddlers  out 
of  business.  No  special  amount  of  money  was  to  be 
asked  of  the  legislature — the  bill  provided  that  the  State 
treasury  should  stand  behind  the  movement. 

The  young  man  was  quick  to  understand  the  tremen 
dous  power  granted  to  the  Governor  by  that  bill.  Un 
der  it  no  party  management,  no  group  of  politicians, 
could  club  or  coax  the  liquor  interests  into  line  at  the 
polls  by  manipulation  of  the  traffic.  No  sheriff  could 
enrich  himself  by  selling  privileges.  No  city  could  gov 
ern  itself  in  that  respect — declaring  that  public  opinion 
favored  the  saloons  and  making  local  law  superior  to  the 
constitutional  law  of  the  State.  The  bill  provided  that 
a  judge  must  knpose  both  fines  and  imprisonment  when 
convictions  were  secured,  and,  therefore,  no  judge  could 
carry  on  any  longer  a  practical  system  of  low  license  by 
imposing  fines  alone. 

322 


WOMEN,    AND    ONE    WOMAN 

It  was  the  principle  of  enforced  prohibition  put  on 
trial. 

In  the  past  the  Luke  Pressons  of  the  State  had  laughed 
at  interference  by  a  Governor.  Local  politics,  easily 
handled,  had  controlled  the  actions  of  cities,  and  police 
had  kept  their  hands  off  the  traffic  for  years. 

Authority  in  liquor  matters  had  been  vested  in  the 
county  high  sheriffs,  and  these  men  were  controlled  from 
State  headquarters  wholly  in  the  interests  of  politics. 

Harlan  was  sufficiently  familiar  with  the  old  plan  to 
know  how  this  new  system  would  upset  the  entire  po 
litical  machine  of  his  State.  That  folio  of  document 
was  a  bombshell, 

He  was  holding  it  outspread  in  his  hands  when  the 
door  opened  so  suddenly  that  it  startled  him.  Thelismer 
Thornton  came  in,  shaking  his  shoulders  disgustedly. 

"Feathers  and  cackle!"  he  muttered.  "This  State 
House  turned  into  a  poultry  yard!  And  half  of  'em 
braced  back  trying  to  crow!  When  a  hen  crows  and  a 
woman  votes — well,  it's  all  the  same  thing!" 

He  relighted  the  cigar  that  he  had  brought  through  the 
press  hidden  in  his  big  palm.  He  eyed  his  grandson 
keenly  and  with  some  disfavor  as  he  puffed  the  cigar 
alight. 

"Look  here,  bub,"  he  burst  out,  "there  are  enough 
women  around  here  to-day  to  remind  me  that  I  want 
to  have  a  word  with  you  on  the  woman  question.  You 
intend  to  marry  Madeleine  Presson,  don't  you?" 

"Intend  to  marry  her!"  blazed  his  grandson.  "You 
talk  as  though  it  was  the  fashion  to  grab  a  girl  and  carry 
her  off  as  they  did  in  the  Stone  Age." 

"  You  know  what  I  mean  very  well,  sir.  I  take  it  you 
are  still  decent,  and  if  you're  decent  you'll  marry  the  girl 
you've  beaued  around  for  six  months — providing  she'll 
have  you.  That  was  the  style  in  my  day — and  decency 
doesn't  change  much — at  least,  it  ought  not  to." 
22  323 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

Had  it  been  the  day  before,  Harlan  Thornton  would 
have  declared  to  his  grandfather  what  his  intentions  were 
toward  Madeleine  Presson.  The  thoughts  of  the  past 
night's  vigil  came  upon  him  now— he  hesitated.  He  was 
angry  with  himself — angry  with  this  blunt  and  persistent 
old  man.  He  did  not  know  whether  resentment  held 
him  back  from  acknowledging  that  he  had  been  a  suitor 
for  the  hand  of  Luke  Presson's  daughter  or  whether  it 
was  the  strange,  new  feeling  toward  Clare  Kavanagh 
since  he  had  learned  that  her  good  name  was  in  such 
piteous  need  of  his  protection  and  defence. 

"Have  you  asked  her  to  marry  you?"  demanded  the 
Duke. 

"  Yes,  I  have — that  is — "  he  paused.  His  air  irritated 
still  more  the  testy  humor  of  the  old  man,  plainly  pro 
voked  by  earlier  matters. 

'"That  is'!"  he  sneered.  '"I  have.'  'Perhaps  I 
have!'  'Maybe  I  have — let's  see  what  my  notes  say!' 
What  in  the  devil  is  the  matter  with  the  young  men  now 
adays,  anyway?  Blood  in  your  veins  about  as  thick  as 
Porty  Reek  molasses!  You  say  you  have  asked  her  to 
marry  you  ?  Well,  if  you've  asked  her  and  mean  it,  have 
you  got  anything  to  do  with  that  Kavanagh  girl  being 
around  this  State  House  to-day?" 

Harlan  sprang  to  his  feet.  He  threw  the  document 
upon  the  table.  His  heart  leaped  within  him.  Even 
while  his  emotions  bewildered  him  he  found  himself  ask 
ing  his  conscience  why  he  had  not  searched  for  her  in 
spite  of  Dennis  Kavanagh  and  her  own  plain  desire  to 
avoid  him.  The  bare  knowledge  that  she  was  near  sent 
the  blood  into  his  face.  Her  coming  to  him  seemed  re 
proach  for  his  acceptance  of  her  flight. 

"Do  you  mean  that?" 

"  You  are  certainly  giving  me  a  fine  imitation  of  a  man 
who  is  surprised,"  stated  his  grandfather.  "Maybe  you 
are!  I  hope  so.  But  she's  here.  She's  with  a  bunch 

324 


WOMEN,   AND    ONE    WOMAN 

of  girls  from  some  school  or  other,  paraded  around  by  a 
hatchet-faced  woman — another  crowing  hen  that's  try 
ing  to  teach  parliamentary  law,  I  suppose.  Harlan,  I 
hope  you've  been  square  with  me  about  that  girl!  Now, 
if  you're  honest,  and  don't  know  she's  here,  keep  out  of 
sight.  I've  given  you  the  tip.  She'll  be  speaking  to  you 
— and  it  will  mix  matters  for  you.  She'd  like  nothing 
better  than  to  do  it!" 

"  I'm  sick  of  that  kind  of  talk  from  you,"  protested  the 
grandson,  angrily.  "  Can't  you  mention  the  name  of  that 
innocent  girl  without  a  slur  or  an  insult?  And  there's 
no  reason  why  I  cannot  meet  Clare  Kavanagh  any  time 
and  at  any  place." 

"  Your  political  rule  of  out-and-open,  as  you've  been 
tutored  by  Yard  Waymouth,  may  work  with  men,  but 
I'm  telling  you  that  it  won't  operate  with  girls,"  replied 
the  Duke.  "  You  may  mean  all  right,  but  I'm  suspicious 
of  you.  You  sneaked  back  to  Fort  Canibas  last  summer 
to  see  her — now  didn't  you?" 

"  I  saw  her." 

"  You  don't  pay  much  attention  to  my  wishes,  do  you, 
Harlan?" 

' '  I  claim  the  right ,  in  a  few  matters ,  to  be  my  own  master. ' ' 

"Even  to  making  a  devilish  fool  of  yourself!  You 
want  Madeleine  Presson.  I  can  see  that  you  want  her. 
I've  been  watching.  And  I'm  coming  out  now  and  say 
that  I  want  you  to  have  her.  She's  my  idea  of  a  wife. 
Now  you  needn't  go  to  talking  about  that  Kavanagh  girl 
and  friendship!  There's  no  such  thing  as  that  kind  of 
friendship." 

Harlan  had  no  time  then  to  vent  the  anger  that  was 
seething  in  him.  It  seemed  that  every  one  who  willed 
took  the  liberty  to  intrude  upon  the  affairs  which  he 
tried  to  keep  sacred.  While  that  thought  was  upper 
most  in  his  troubled  emotions,  Linton,  the  other  chief 
offender,  came  in,  Presson  with  him. 

325 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

The  chairman  began  briskly.  He  was  serious,  but  he 
spoke  kindly. 

"  I  don't  usually  interfere  in  these  matters,  but  we'd 
better  have  this  thing  straightened  out  for  the  good  of 
all  of  us.  I'm  glad  you're  here,  Thelismer.  I  want  you 
to  stand  by  and  listen.  Here  are  two  mighty  good  boys, 
these  two — and  now  we'll  leave  out  all  political  differ 
ences.  We  can  afford  to.  We're  all  better  friends  than 
we  were  when  the  session  opened."  In  spite  of  his  ab 
sorption  in  his  own  affairs  Harlan  thought  of  the  legisla 
tive  morrow  and  its  possibilities.  "  Now,  this  isn't  poli 
tics!  As  I  say,  I  don't  usually  meddle  in  my  wife's  or 
my  daughter's — " 

"Just  one  moment,  Mr.  Presson!"  Harlan  strode  for 
ward.  "  Has  this  lying  scoundrel  dared  to  bring  his 
dirty  scandal  to  you?" 

He  looked  over  the  head  of  the  chairman  into  the 
defiant  face  of  his  rival.  The  little  man  threw  up  his 
hands,  standing  between  them. 

"  Hold  on !  Hold  on !  You  haven't  come  to  me  in 
the  usual  way,  but  as  near  as  I  can  find  out  both  of  you 
are  after  my  daughter.  I  know  of  my  own  knowledge, 
Harlan,  that  you  have  been  interested  up-country.  I 
simply  want  to  have  a  general  understanding.  I  brought 
Linton  here  with  me.  No  use  in  running  between!  Let's 
have  our  say  face  to  face." 

Harlan  controlled  himself. 

"  I  think  I  understand  just  what  prompts  you,  Mr. 
Presson,"  he  said.  "I  respect  your  motives.  You've 
been  imposed  upon.  But  you're  not  to  blame.  I  know 
what  you're  going  to  ask  me.  I'll  save  you  the  trouble. 
I  admire  your  daughter  greatly.  I  have  intended  to  ask 
her  hand  in  marriage."  He  was  suddenly  conscious  that 
the  determination  to  persist  in  that  suit  was  not  acute. 

"That  wasn't  what  I  was  going  to  ask  you,"  said  Pres 
son  with  decision.  "  It's  about  the  girl  whom  I  saw — 

326 


WOMEN,    AND    ONE    WOMAN 

"The  name  of  no  other  person  belongs  in  this  discus 
sion,"  broke  in  Harlan,  firmly.  "I  refuse  to  permit 
that  name  to  be  dragged  in,  for  it's  insult  and  scan 
dal." 

There  was  silence  in  the  room.  The  chairman  looked 
at  Harlan,  impressed  by  his  demeanor.  He  knew  the 
young  man  well  enough  to  think  twice  before  he  per 
sisted.  Thelismer  Thornton  smoked  hard,  scowling.  He 
was  a  little  cautious  about  thrusting  himself  further  into 
a  matter  that  he  knew  would  test  the  Thornton  spirit 
in  his  grandson. 

But  Linton  was  determined  to  win  his  point.  He 
thought  he  saw  his  opportunity.  He  hoped  he  could 
force  a  break  between  Presson  and  the  other  suitor. 

"I'm  interested  in  this  matter  as  much  as  any  one," 
he  declared.  "  I  have  not  told  you  the  full  story,  Mr. 
Presson.  But  I'm  here  to  see  this  matter  straightened 
out  for  good  and  all,  and  unless  you  get  an  answer  from 
this  man,  as  a  father  ought  to,  I'll  see  that  you  have  the 
facts  to  put  you  right." 

"  Linton,  didn't  I  tell  you  last  night  that  you  were 
circulating  a  lie?"  Harlan's  face  was  gray. 

"  If  it's  a  lie  why  are  you  afraid  of  telling  Mr.  Presson 
the  whole  truth  and  explaining  the  matter?"  insisted 
Linton  with  a  lawyer's  pertinacity  in  extracting  evidence. 
He  realized  that  if  young  Thornton  talked,  even  to  admit 
the  facts  that  information  from  the  north  country  seemed 
to  prove,  a  bit  of  impromptu  cross-examination  might 
yield  results  that  would  help  the  Linton  cause. 

"  I  refuse  because  every  word  that  is  said  on  the  sub 
ject  is  a  gross  insult  to  an  innocent  girl,"  declared  Har 
lan,  passionately.  "And  I  warn  you  that  if  you  open 
your  mouth  again  you'll  get  the  only  thing  a  man  can 
give  you  and  remain  a  man!" 

"You'd  better  take  the  hint,  Linton,"  advised  the 
Duke.  "  I  don't  know  exactly  what  you're  driving  ab, 

327 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

but  you're  heading  toward  trouble.  They  don't  do 
things  up  our  way  as  they  do  in  a  city  court-room. ' ' 

Linton  was  angry,  desperate,  and  he  was  as  stalwart 
as  the  other.  He  was  not  inclined  to  let  that  opportu 
nity  pass. 

Defiantly  he  plunged  into  the  story  that  Spinney  had 
reported.  To  his  astonishment  Harlan  rushed  for  the 
door.  He  went  out  and  slammed  it  behind  him. 

A  project  had  come  to  him,  prompted  by  his  furious 
rage  which  mocked  common-sense.  A  man  more  accus 
tomed  to  the  conventions  would  not  have  attempted  it. 
But  all  his  north-country  passion  rioted  in  him  at  that 
moment. 

The  night  before  he  had  wept  because  the  peace  and 
good  name  of  Clare  Kavanagh  were  threatened  and  he 
could  only  beat  the  ugly  phantom  of  scandal  helplessly. 

Now  suddenly  he  found  work  for  his  hands — and  his 
hands  had  always  been  his  means  of  expressing  his  soul 
in  toil,  achievement,  and  in  passion. 

He  hurried  down  the  stairs  into  the  State  House  ro 
tunda  where  the  throngs  were.  The  hearing  before  the 
committee  was  adjourned.  The  band  was  playing.  He 
thrust  himself  through  the  press  of  the  women.  Maids 
and  matrons  stared  after  him.  His  face  was  pale,  his 
lips  made  a  straight-edge  and  his  eyes  swept  every  group 
with  eagerness  that  was  almost  wild.  It  was  search  that 
was  distracting.  There  were  women,  women.  There 
were  so  many  faces  to  scan!  Chance  led  him  to  her — 
good  fortune  and  the  sudden  thought  that  she  would 
probably  be  found  near  some  object  of  interest,  were 
she  escorted  by  a  teacher.  He  saw  the  group  near  the 
great  case  that  held  the  State's  battle-flags.  He  caught 
her  arm  and  her  startled  face  was  turned  up  to  his. 

"Come,"  he  whispered,  hoarsely.  "Come!  Do  not 
ask  me  why.  Only  come.  Hurry!" 

With  the  trustfulness  she  had  always  shown  in  him 
328 


WOMEN,   AND    ONE    WOMAN 

she  did  not  hesitate.  She  did  not  even  offer  excuses  to 
the  tall  woman  who  stepped  forward  to  inquire  the  in 
tentions  of  this  abrupt  young  man.  She  went,  as  she 
went  in  the  north  country  when  he  called  to  her.  Cling 
ing  to  his  arm  she  hurried  up  the  broad  marble  stairway. 

She  did  not  ask  why.  Her  faith  was  complete.  But 
his  demeanor  frightened  her. 

"I  was  sorry  after  I  got  here,"  she  gasped,  as  they 
hurried  on.  "  But  the  others  came  from  the  school,  and 
I  thought  it  would  be  such  a  great  place  here  that  no  one 
would  notice  me.  I  thought  you  would  not  see  me, 
Harlan.  But  I  wanted  to  learn  about — about  what  you 
did — what  the  lawmakers  did,  so  that — so  that — " 

"Hurry,"  he  urged  her.  He  feared  that  they  would 
be  gone. 

This  brusqueness,  his  haste,  his  sternness  troubled  her 
more  and  more.  They  were  alone  in  the  corridor  that 
led  to  the  committee-room.  She  stopped,  holding  him 
back  with  her  strong  young  arms.  He  had  hardly  looked 
at  her  till  then.  She  had  changed  in  the  months  since 
he  had  seen  her.  Womanly  dignity  was  mingled  with 
the  high  spirit  that  had  inspired  the  child.  Her  garb, 
her  new  mien  made  her  beauty  brilliant. 

"I  never  lied  to  you  yet,  Big  Boy,"  she  cried.  "I 
came  here  because  I  was  hungry  for  a  sight  of  you.  Then 
I  would  go  back  to  my  work  comforted.  Now  my  con 
science  is  clear.  Take  me  where  you  will." 

In  that  moment  his  heart  was  revealed  to  him.  In  the 
stress  of  new  emotions  he  understood  himself  at  last. 
He  understood  that  the  love  which  mates,  which  sweeps 
away  all  calculation,  which  welds,  trusts,  and  never 
pauses  to  analyze  or  compute,  is  love  that  disdains  mere 
admiration  of  intellect  or  lure  of  beauty. 

His  quiet  nature  had  depths.  They  had  never  been 
stirred  till  then.  The  child-love  had  been  budding  there 
ready  for  blossom.  It  had  been  fed  by  faith  and  ripened 

329 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

by  association.  Passion  now  brought  it  to  fruition. 
Madeleine  Presson  had  appealed  only  to  one  side  of  him. 
This  girl  rounded  out  the  whole  philosophy  of  love.  She 
was  not  a  divinity.  His  nature  did  not  crave  divinity. 
In  his  strength,  sincerity,  ingenuousness,  his  man's  soul, 
primitive  as  the  free  woods,  required  the  mate — one  to 
be  cherished  and  protected.  And  so,  now,  when  all  his 
soul  was  stirred,  this  girl,  so  bitterly  in  need  of  protec 
tion — the  girl  whom  the  years  had  endeared  to  him — 
came  into  his  heart  to  reign  there. 

Words,  emotion  choked  him.  But  he  could  not  wait, 
then.  She  saw  something  in  his  eyes  she  had  never 
seen  there  till  that  moment.  But  before  she  could  un 
derstand  he  carried  her  along  with  him. 

"Come!     I  can't  wait!"  he  cried. 

When  he  flung  open  the  door  of  the  committee-room 
the  men  in  it  were  standing  in  silence.  Presson  had 
picked  up  the  "Thornton  Bill"  and  was  reading  it, 
scowling.  Whatever  Linton  had  said,  it  was  plain  that 
the  father  of  Madeleine  Presson  had  just  found  some 
thing  which  diverted  his  attention  from  family  mat 
ters. 

Harlan  shut  the  door  behind.  He  locked  it.  He 
stepped  away  from  the  girl,  leaving  her  standing  there. 
She  was  a  picture  to  confute  slander. 

The  chairman  gazed  at  her  in  astonishment.  He  had 
not  expected  such  prompt  incarnation  of  the  topic. 

"  I  know  what  foul  lies  have  just  been  uttered  in  this 
room  by  that  fellow!"  Harlan  leaned  forward  and  drove 
an  accusatory  finger  at  Linton.  "  Now  here  stands  the 
woman  you  have  insulted.  Look  at  her,  you  lying 
hound!  There's  only  one  thing  you  can  do!  Acknowl 
edge  yourself  a  liar  and  apologize!" 

Linton  did  not  speak.  He  raised  his  eyebrows;  it 
was  unspoken  comment  on  the  peculiar  actions  of  this 
young  savage  from  the  woods. 

330 


WOMEN,   AND    ONE    WOMAN 

"  Presson,  get  out  of  here  and  bring  help,"  muttered 
the  Duke.  "Hell  is  going  to  break  loose!" 

The  chairman  slipped  the  document  into  his  pocket 
and  tiptoed  around  the  side  of  the  room.  Harlan  paid 
no  attention  to  him.  His  eyes  were  for  Linton. 

"  Are  you  going  to  apologize  ?" 

"  I'll  wait  until —  "  began  the  lawyer,  but  he  got  no 
further. 

The  Thornton  temper  had  been  strained  beyond  the 
breaking-point.  Harlan  was  upon  him. 

"Bring  a  dozen!"  yelled  the  Duke  after  the  chairman 
who  had  been  tugging  at  the  door,  and  now  escaped. 

Linton  was  tall  and  muscular,  but  law-practice  is  not 
lumbering.  He  struck  viciously  at  Harlan,  ducking  to 
and  fro  with  the  briskness  of  the  trained  boxer.  But 
the  woodsman  merely  leaped  upon  him,  heedless  of  his 
blows.  He  bore  him  down.  He  drove  resistless  knees 
into  his  shoulders.  He  thrust  Linton's  face  against  the 
floor  and  ground  it  against  the  boards.  Then  he  dragged 
the  limp  figure  past  the  cursing  Duke  toward  the  girl. 
She  had  fled  to  a  corner,  covering  her  eyes  and  sobbing  in 
terror. 

"  D— n  you,  you'll  apologize  to  the  girl  who's  going 
to  be  my  wife,"  raved  Harlan. 

When  Presson  returned  at  the  head  of  volunteers  the 
victor  was  grinding  the  bleeding  face  on  the  floor  once 
more  and  Linton  was  screaming  appeals. 

There  were  enough  of  them  to  separate  the  men.  They 
dragged  Harlan  away  out  of  the  room  in  spite  of  his 
struggles.  The  mere  sight  of  the  lawyer  seemed  to  in 
furiate  him  more. 

The  Duke  hurried  the  girl  out  and  away  while  the 
peacemakers  were  struggling  with  the  young  combatants. 

"  Stop  that  blubbering,"  he  commanded,  roughly.  "  If 
you've  got  any  grit  left  in  you,  brace  up.  Don't  let 
people  here  notice!" 

33' 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

He  was  trying  to  hide  as  much  of  the  true  reason  for 
the  affray  as  he  could.  He  wanted  to  get  the  girl  out 
of  sight. 

"I  didn't  know — I  did  nothing — if  it  was  about  me 
I  didn't — "  He  stopped  her  brutally. 

"  About  you,  you  little  fool  ?  Of  course  it  wasn't  about 
you!  My  grandson  is  going  to  marry  Luke  Presson's 
daughter." 

She  stiffened  in  the  hook  of  his  arm.  They  were  in 
the  corridor  and  had  not  come  into  the  view  of  the 
people. 

"  Every  one  knows  it,"  he  hurried  on.  He  saw  an  op 
portunity  to  get  in  a  cruel  blow  at  the  romance  he  sus 
pected  and  hated.  "  They  have  been  going  together  for 
months.  She'll  be  the  right  kind  of  a  wife  for  him. 
They  were  fighting  about  her — those  two  young  hyenas." 

She  pulled  away  from  him.  The  tears  were  on  her 
cheeks,  but  she  held  herself  straight  and  looked  him  in 
the  eye. 

"That's  a  lie,  Mr.  Thornton!" 

"  It's  the  truth.  He'll  marry  her  if  you  haven't 
spoiled  it  all  for  him — spoiled  his  good  name  and  stirred 
up  all  this  scandal  for  him  just  as  he  was  getting  ready 
to  amount  to  something  in  the  world,  with  a  wife  that 
could  help  him!  You  get  away  from  here  as  quickly 
as  you  can.  You  hear  me?  If  his  career  is  spoiled 
you've  done  it.  Don't  stay  around  here  and  disgrace 
him  any  more.  It's  bad  enough,  as  it  is,  for  him  and 
Miss  Presson!" 

She  stared  at  him,  stricken  and  puzzled.  Then  she 
left  him. 

"I  don't  need  any  further  escort,"  she  informed  him, 
turning  after  she  had  gone  a  few  steps.  It  was  Dennis 
Kavanagh's  girl  speaking  now.  "  I  have  been  escorted 
by  the  Thorntons  quite  enough  during  the  past  ten 
minutes.  I  tell  you  again,  I  believe  you  lie.  But  I 

332 


WOMEN,   AND    ONE    WOMAN 

propose  to  understand  something  more  about  this — and 
I'll  not  disgrace  you  nor  your  grandson!" 

"Go  ask  some  questions!"  he  called  after  her.  He 
felt  sure  that  gossip  would  confirm  him.  But  to  make 
sure  that  Harlan  did  not  follow  her  and  find  her  and 
discredit  gossip  he  turned  back  down  the  corridor  pur 
posing  to  keep  that  belligerent  young  man  under  watch 
and  ward  for  a  time. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 


THE    WAY    OF    A   MAID    WITH    A    MAID 

HE  Duke  found  his  grandson  in  an  ante 
room  where  the  half  dozen  excited,  won 
dering  men  had  conveyed  him. 

The  old  man  and  the  young  man  stood 
for  a   few  moments  and  gazed  at  each 
other.      Harlan   was   breathless,  dishev 
eled,  his  knuckles  were  bleeding. 
"Where  is  she?" 

The  Duke  came  close  to  him.  "  She  went  away.  Now 
keep  your  mouth  closed.  You  talk  about  disgracing  a 
girl,"  he  muttered  in  his  grandson's  ear;  "  if  you  haven't 
disgraced  her  and  yourself  and  all  of  us  here  to-day  it 
isn't  because  you  haven't  done  your  best!  God  only 
knows  why  I  didn't  leave  you  in  the  woods  where  you 
belong!" 

"I'm  going  out  to  find  her,"  insisted  his  grandson. 
"This  is  my  own  business  from  now  on." 

"  You  try  to  leave  this  room  in  the  shape  you're  in 

and  I'll  have  you  committed  to  the  insane  asylum  across 

the  river.     The  girl  has  more  sense  than  you've  got." 

While  he  was  speaking  Presson  came  in.     He  pulled 

the  House  bill  from  his  pocket. 

"Thornton,"  he  said,  walking  up  to  Harlan,  "I  didn't 
think  there  could  be  anything  more  important  just  now 
than  the  damnable  performance  you've  just  been  through 
and  the  part  my  family  plays  in  it.  But  here's  some 
thing  I  propose  to  take  while  it's  hot!"  He  shook  the 

334 


THE    WAY    OF    A    MAID    WITH    A    MAID 

document  at  the  young  man.  Harlan  swept  it  out  of 
his  grasp  before  he  could  prevent,  and  buttoned  it  in  his 
breast-pocket. 

"That  is  mine,"  he  stated,  not  flinching  under  the 
indignant  protest. 

"  If  it's  yours  will  you  inform  me  what  you  intend  to 
do  with  it  ?" 

"  I  intend  to  introduce  it  in  the  House  at  to-morrow's 
session  and  work  for  its  passage." 

"He's  got  a  bill  there,"  roared  the  chairman,  turning 
to  the  Duke,  "that's  written  by  the  Devil  himself!  It 
makes  old  Waymouth  archfiend  of  all  the  ramrodders  in 
this  State!  Our  sheriffs  are  made  his  deputies  and  the 
Russian  Tsar  becomes  a  hog-reeve  beside  him."  He 
blurted  out  the  purport  of  the  measure,  garnishing  the 
recital  with  good,  round  oaths. 

"So  you're  loaded  with  that,  are  you?"  inquired  the 
elder  Thornton.  He  was  as  careless  of  the  presence  of 
the  listeners  as  the  chairman  had  been.  He  began  in 
vective,  but  the  young  man  broke  in. 

"Grandfather,"  he  said,  firmly,  "I've  listened  long 
enough  to  that  kind  of  talk  from  you  and  Mr.  Presson — 
I've  listened  to  all  kinds  of  reasons  why  a  man  should 
come  here  and  sell  his  soul  for  the  sake  of  getting  ahead 
in  politics."  He  was  thinking  of  the  temptation  that 
had  come  to  him  in  the  form  of  Madeleine  Presson.  "  I 
don't  want  any  more  of  it.  I  don't  know  of  any  reason 
why  this  State  shouldn't  obey  its  laws  so  long  as  they 
remain  laws.  As  to  my  private  business,  I  suggest  that 
the  two  of  you  keep  still." 

They  had  no  appetite  for  further  discourse  with  this 
young  madman  just  then. 

The  Duke  turned  on  his  heel  and  walked  out.  Pres 
son  followed. 

"Gentlemen,"  said  the  young  man  to  those  who  re 
mained,  "  I  have  no  quarrel  with  you.  I  do  not  want 

335 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

any.  Do  you  understand?"  He  wiped  his  hands  with 
his  handkerchief,  smoothed  his  hair,  and  walked  past 
them. 

As  calmly  as  he  could  he  hurried  through  the  lobbies 
and  the  rotunda  of  the  State  House.  The  crowds  were 
thinning.  The  band  had  gone.  The  women  had  scat 
tered  to  prepare  for  the  ball  of  the  evening.  Among  the 
few  that  were  left  he  could  not  find  her. 

He  went  back  to  his  committee-room  and  pondered 
until  dusk  fell. 

One  matter  presented  itself  to  his  mood  as  a  duty. 
He  called  a  carriage  and  was  driven  to  the  Presson  home. 

Madeleine  came  down  in  answer  to  his  card.  But  as 
she  entered  the  reception-room  her  father  followed  at 
her  heels,  beginning  threats  as  he  came  in. 

"Father,"  she  said,  quietly,  "I  have  just  listened  to 
you.  You  need  not  fear  that  I  do  not  understand  myself 
and  my  duty.  I  ask  you  to  retire." 

He  stood  there  a  moment,  still  muttering  his  wrathful 
protest,  but  in  the  end  her  dignity  mastered  him.  He 
went  away. 

What  she  did  next  amazed  the  young  man  who  stood 
there  waiting.  She  came  to  him  and  patted  his  cheek. 

"My  poor  boy,"  she  said,  softly,  and  drew  him  down 
beside  her  on  a  couch. 

For  a  moment  the  words  he  had  come  prepared  to  say 
deserted  him.  He  could  not  speak.  He  found  sincere 
compassion  in  her  eyes — sympathy  and  something  else 
which  he  did  not  fathom. 

"  I  can  do  at  least  one  decent  thing  to-day,"  he  burst 
out.  "  I  can  come  to  you  man-fashion  and  ask  you  to 
release  me  from  our  engagement  of  this  evening.  I  know, 
of  course,  you  wouldn't  go  to  the  ball  with  me  after  what 
has  happened.  But  there's  a  deeper  reason.  I  am  going 
to  tell  it  to  you.  Don't  misunderstand  me.  I  don't 
know  the  right  words  to  use.  Any  way  I  put  it  may 

336 


THE    WAY    OF    A    MAID    WITH    A    MAID 

sound  as  though  I  were  a  cad.  But  understand  me, 
Madeleine — as  my  friend,  understand  me — for  God's 
sake,  do!  You  have  been  wise.  You  have  counselled 
me.  I  need  a  friend  now!"  His  voice  broke,  and  she 
waited.  "I've  come  to  my  senses.  Oh,  it's  no  dis 
credit  to  you  that  I  thought  I  loved  you.  I  thought  so." 

"  Your  love  would  honor  any  woman,  Harlan." 

He  looked  at  her  piteously.  He  understood  how  his 
confession  would  sound.  Only  his  resolve  to  be  honest 
with  her  availed  to  drive  him  to  the  confession  he  in 
tended  to  make. 

"I  couldn't  say  it  to  some  girls,"  he  cried.  "They 
would  not  see  how  it  was.  But  I  can  only  tell  you  the 
truth!" 

"Wait  a  moment,"  she  said,  interrupting.  "You  are 
not  just  yourself.  Let  me  talk  to  you.  Only  a  little 
while  ago  a  girl  came  to  me." 

He  started  up,  but  she  restrained  him. 

"  Listen !  She  had  heard.  There  were  plenty  to  tell 
her  when  she  asked.  We  have  given  occasion  for  gossip. 
Gossip  has  eyes  and  ears  and  good  imagination.  It  has 
even  been  reported  that  our  engagement  would  be  an 
nounced  after  the  legislative  ball.  Wait !  She  heard  all 
that  from  the  first  one  she  asked.  She  has  told  me  so. 
She  believes  it!" 

"  Believes  it!     What  did  you  tell  her?" 

"Wait,  I  say!  I  have  shown  patience  this  afternoon. 
I  waited  for  her  to  speak.  Let  me  tell  you  what  she  said 
while  I  waited.  She  said  she  wanted  you  to  be  a  great 
man.  She  knew,  so  she  told  me,  that  she  only  brought 
trouble  and  distress  to  you.  She  wanted  to  see  me  so 
that  she  might  know  if  I  were  the  one  who  could  help 
you  in  your  career.  I'll  not  tell  you  what  she  said  to 
me  about  myself.  She  is  a  sweet  and  gracious  girl,  that 
little  Clare,  Harlan!  She  said  she  knew  I  could  help 
you  in  your  work  in  life.  And  she  wanted  to  tell  me 

337 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

the  little  story  of  you  two — she  wanted  to  forestall  gossip 
that  might  hurt  you  in  my  eyes.  And  she  gave  you  to 
me.  Harlan,  I  have  heard  of  that  kind  of  love — but  I 
didn't  believe  it  existed.  Did  you?" 

Tears  were  on  his  cheeks. 

"  I  know  her!"  he  choked. 

She  understood  his  answer.     She  waited  a  little  while. 

"  And  I  love  her  above  all  the  honors  and  treasures  of 
this  world!" 

She  stood  up. 

"I'm  going  to  find  her,"  he  went  on.  "You  under 
stand  me,  don't  you,  Madeleine?" 

"I  understand.  But  you  shall  not  go  to  find  her"- 
she  smiled  into  his  startled  eyes — -"  for  she  is  hidden  in 
my  room,  waiting  to  tell  me  more — waiting  until  I  tell 
her  something  that  will  take  the  burden  from  her  heart. 
I  had  been  listening  to  her  when  my  father  came  in  with 
his  story;  I  had  not  made  my  confession.  It  would 
have  comforted  her — it  will  comfort  her,  for  I  can  tell 
her  truthfully  I  have  not  yet  met  the  man  I  can  love, 
Harlan— you  were  not  the  one!"  She  left  with  him  the 
consolation  of  a  smile  and  hastened  away.  She  did 
not  even  reproach  him  because  of  his  affair  with  Lin- 
ton. 

He  stood  waiting  at  the  door.  He  heard  the  steps  on 
the  stairs.  He  was  ready  to  clasp  her. 

But  Madeleine  Presson  came  in  alone.  "  The  girl  has 
gone,  Harlan.  The  maid  said  she  ran  away  after  I  left 
her.  I  was  a  fool.  I  dropped  your  card!" 

He  stood  dumb  and  motionless. 

"Gone,  believing  that!"  he  gasped. 

She  shook  him.  "  But  you  can  find  her.  Remember 
that  she  is  young.  She  believed  gossip  too  quickly. 
You  must  find  her.  Hurry!  She  will  only  have  to  see 
your  eyes  to  know  that  they  all  lied." 

He  rushed  to  the  door. 

338 


THE    WAY    OF   A    MAID    WITH    A    MAID 

"  Bring  her  to  me,"  cried  the  girl.  "  I'll  know  how  to 
help  you." 

At  the  railroad  station  he  was  told  that  the  special 
trains  had  gone  with  the  visitors  who  were  not  in  town 
for  the  ball. 

He  did  not  even  know  the  name  of  the  school  from 
which  she  had  come. 

At  the  State  House  he  at  last  found  some  one  who 
had  seen  and  known  the  group — an  attache"  of  the  State 
educational  department.  There  was  no  train  that  way 
until  midnight.  He  took  it.  How  he  passed  the  time 
of  waiting  he  never  knew.  He  was  at  the  doors  of  the 
institution  as  early  as  decency  permitted.  He  did  not 
wish  to  compromise  her. 

He  was  assured  in  a  manner  that  left  no  room  for 
doubt  that  Miss  Kavanagh  had  not  returned  with  the 
others.  They  were  much  worried  and  had  notified  her 
father. 

Harlan  sent  an  appealing  telegram  to  him,  daring  even 
to  solicit  that  ogre  of  the  North.  But  no  word  came  to 
him. 

He  wired  orders  to  his  caretaker  at  "The  Barracks" 
to  investigate  at  that  end,  and  returned  to  the  State 
capital,  distracted,  baffled,  not  knowing  what  step  to 
take  next.  The  session  had  not  closed  for  the  day  when 
he  arrived  at  the  State  House. 

Men  in  the  lobby  stared  at  him  as  he  passed.  It  was 
evident  that  tongues  had  been  busy  with  his  affairs. 
His  grandfather,  striding  up  and  down,  tried  to  intercept 
him,  but  he  kept  on  to  his  seat.  All  the  eyes  of  the 
House  were  on  him.  Word  of  the  "Thornton  Bill"  had 
gone  abroad.  Now,  in  spite  of  his  mental  distress,  he 
remembered  his  duty. 

When  he  rose  to  ask  the  privilege  of  introducing  a 
bill,  interrupting  the  order  of  business,  he  anticipated 
objection. 

23  339 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

No  objection  was  made. 

The  opposition  did  not  propose  to  waste  effort  on 
pettifogging  preliminaries. 

The  bill  went  in  and  on  its  way — and  that  night  the 
capital  buzzed  with  the  discussion  of  it. 

Harlan  Thornton  spent  half  the  night  at  the  telegraph- 
office,  his  mind  intent  on  something  far  from  prospec 
tive  legislation. 

But  no  word  came  to  comfort  him — no  clew  that  he 
could  pursue. 

Days  grew  into  weeks.  He  did  not  attempt  search  in 
person.  It  would  have  been  vague  wandering  about  the 
country.  He  remained  to  hold  up  the  hands  of  Gov 
ernor  Waymouth,  finding  relish  for  fight  in  the  rancor 
that  settled  within  him. 

He  and  Linton  silently  faced  the  gossip  that  beat  about 
them  in  regard  to  their  encounter — and  kept  away  from 
each  other.  Theirs  was  a  balanced  account. 

And  Madeleine  Presson  somewhat  ostentatiously  per 
mitted  the  attentions  of  the  young  Secretary  of  State ! 


CHAPTER  XXVII 


THE    EVERLASTING    PROBLEM 

AY  after  day,  during  that  session,  an  old 
man  sat  in  the  executive  chamber  of  the 
State  House.  His  face  grew  as  white  as 
his  hair.  There  were  deeper  lines  in  his 
countenance  than  mere  old  age  had  tooled 
across  the  skin.  One  after  the  other  the 
men  of  the  two  branches  of  the  legislature  came  before 
him  at  his  summons.  He  did  not  entreat  of  them. 
There  was  no  more  of  that  suave  political  diplomacy  in 
the  executive  chamber,  after  the  fashion  of  the  old  days 
of  easy  rule.  This  Governor  declared  himself  to  be  the 
mouthpiece  of  the  people  of  his  State.  He  showed  to 
the  legislators  their  path  toward  absolute  honesty.  He 
ordered  them  to  follow  it.  One  or  two  of  the  first  ones 
who  were  called  upon  the  carpet  dared  to  refuse — at 
tempted  to  evade.  He  promptly  issued  statements  to 
the  press,  holding  those  men  up  to  the  people  of  their 
State  as  traders  and  tricksters.  Voters  had  always  un 
derstood  that  trades  and  tricks  were  in  progress  in  the 
legislature,  and  had  never  bothered  their  heads  much 
about  the  matter.  But  this  incisive  showing  up  of  in 
dividuals  was  new  and  startling  and  effective.  It  af 
forded  no  opportunity  for  the  specious  reasoning  along 
mere  political  lines  which  had  excused  dishonesty  in  the 
past. 

Protests  poured  in  on  the  would-be  rebels.     Their  ex 
perience  warned  the  others.     The  State  was  in  a  mood 

34i 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

to  try  reform.  The  reform  was  promised  on  the  usual 
broad  lines.  Individuals  did  not  stop  to  reflect  what 
effect  the  suggested  legislation  would  have  on  their  own 
interests.  Every  man  was  after  "the  other  fellow." 

"I'll  keep  you  here  until  you  pass  these  laws,"  stated 
the  grim  old  man  in  the  executive  chamber,  "  even  if  you 
stay  here  till  snow  flies  again." 

Legislators  are  paid  by  the  session,  not  by  the  week. 
The  prospect  of  spending  the  summer  fighting  an  obstinate 
old  man,  with  the  people  behind  him,  was  not  alluring 
when  personal  expenses  were  considered.  Even  lobbyists 
and  corporations  and  political  considerations  fail  to  hold 
sway  under  such  conditions. 

The  Governor's  bills  went  through. 

"They've  abolished  fees,"  drawled  Thelismer  Thorn 
ton,  one  day  in  the  lobby,  "  to  get  square  with  Constable 
Emerson  Pike  up  my  way.  Em  went  down  to  replevin 
some  hens,  and  after  he'd  chased  each  hen  a  dozen  times 
around  the  barn  he  sat  down  and  charged  up  mileage  to 
the  county.  The  rest  of  this  legislation  is  on  the  same 
basis.  Here's  a  legislature  that's  like  Dave  Darrington's 
hogs.  After  old  Dave  lost  his  voice  and  couldn't  holler 
to  the  hogs,  he  used  to  rap  on  the  trough  with  his  cane 
at  feeding-time.  Then  a  woodpecker  made  his  home  in 
the  pig-pen  and  the  hogs  went  crazy.  Yard  Waymouth 
is  all  bill!  I'd  reckoned  I'd  go  home.  But  I  guess  I'll 
stay  and  see  just  how  far  dam  foolishness  can  go!" 

So  he  patrolled  the  lobby,  puffing  everlastingly  at  his 
cigar,  watching  the  activity  of  Harlan  with  a  disgust 
that  he  did  not  try  to  conceal  and  occasionally  flinging  a 
sour  remark  at  that  devoted  young  man. 

"  A  calf  leaving  the  cow  to  chase  a  steer,"  he  growled. 
"He'll  know  better  when  it  comes  supper-time!" 

One  day  a  man  halted  him.  "  You  may  be  interested 
in  what's  going  on  in  the  House,  just  now,  Mr.  Thornton. 
Your  grandson  is  making  a  speech." 

342 


THE    EVERLASTING    PROBLEM 

"Then  he  has  lost  his  mind!"  snapped  the  Duke. 
"  I'd  only  suspected  it  up  to  now!" 

But  when  he  edged  in  at  the  door  he  discovered  that 
his  grandson  was  not  making  the  usual  spectacle  which 
the  untried  orator  affords.  The  zeal  which  had  driven 
him  into  the  fight  was  supporting  him  as  he  faced  the 
men  who  were  his  associates.  He  stood  at  his  desk,  pale 
— but  unfaltering.  He  wras  talking  to  them,  man  to 
man. 

"  It  has  met  me  to  my  face,  it  has  followed  at  my  back 
through  all  these  weeks,"  he  was  saying.  "  I'm  accused 
of  helping  to  wreck  my  party.  You  know  better  than 
that,  gentlemen.  You  know  who  did  the  wrecking.  It 
has  been  going  on  for  years.  And  we  have  been  asked 
to  hide  the  retreat  of  the  wreckers.  I  refuse  to  allow 
those  men  who  have  wrecked  our  party  to  call  themselves 
the  true  prophets  and  summon  us  to  follow  them.  Our 
party  is  not  simply  the  men  who  hold  office  for  their  per 
sonal  gain.  If  making  them  honest  or  putting  them  out 
is  destroying  the  party,  then  let's  destroy  and  rebuild. 

"We  need  to  rebuild. 

"  Up  in  our  woods  it's  dangerous  to  leave  slash  on  the 
ground  after  a  winter's  cutting.  The  politicians  have 
left  a  lot  of  slash  in  this  State.  The  fire  has  got  into  it. 
It  is  burning  up  the  old  dead  branches  and  tops,  but  it  is 
hurting  the  standing  timber,  too— I  understand  that. 
Why  not  see  to  it  after  this  that  the  men  who  leave 
political  slash  shall  not  be  allowed  to  operate! 

"It's  a  bad  litter,  gentlemen,  that  has  been  left 
around  the  roots  of  our  prohibitory  law.  I  have  intro 
duced  the  bill  that's  now  under  consideration.  It  has 
nothing  to  do  with  the  principle  of  prohibition — the 
theory  of  that  was  threshed  out  in  these  chambers  before 
I  was  born.  But  isn't  it  time,  gentlemen,  to  have  a  test 
of  the  practice  of  prohibition  ? 

"  I  know  little  about  politics.  I  am  merely  one  of  the 
343 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

hundreds  of  young  men  in  this  State  who  stand  on  the 
outside  of  politics  and  want  the  opportunity  to  be  honest 
when  we  vote.  We  appeal  to  the  older  men  of  this  State 
to  drop  the  game  for  a  little  while  and  give  us  a  chance 
to  start  fair.  The  biggest  corporation  in  this  State  is 
the  State  itself,  and  I  like  to  think  that  all  of  us,  young 
or  old,  are  partners  or  stockholders.  I've  been  brought 
up  in  business.  We  know  what  we'd  all  do  in  straight 
business.  Why  can't  we  do  it  in  State  affairs?  Too 
many  influences  surround  a  legislature  to  make  its  work 
really  deliberative.  After  the  heat  and  arguments  of 
this  session  have  died  away  we  ought  to  have  a  meeting 
on  a  real  business  basis. 

"  Let  the  churches,  the  grange,  the  radicals,  the  liber 
als,  the  hotel  men,  the  liquor  men,  all  send  their  dele 
gates.  Let  that  assemblage  take  thought  on  a  plan 
which  will  lift  out  of  politics  a  question  that  doesn't 
belong  there.  Let's  end  civil  war  on  this  question.  Give 
the  young  men  some  other  picture  as  their  eyes  open  on 
the  politics  of  this  State." 

It  was  the  earnest,  ingenuous  appeal  of  one  crying  out 
of  the  wilderness  of  human  uncertainty — of  one  who  saw 
the  evils  in  those  attempts  of  men  to  curb  greed  and 
appetite — of  one  earnestly  seeking  a  remedy,  but  not 
clearly  understanding  that  so  long  as  the  world  shall  en 
dure,  with  men  and  women  weak  and  human,  some  prob 
lems  must  remain  unsettled. 

"I'll  suggest  a  place  for  that  convention,"  muttered 
Thelismer  Thornton  to  those  who  stood  about  him. 
"  Hold  it  in  Purity  Park  in  Paradise !  Settle  the  rum 
question!"  he  sneered.  "Noah  hadn't  been  stamping 
around  on  dry  ground  long  enough  to  get  his  quilts  aired 
out  before  he  was  drunk  on  Noah's  Three  Star!  And 
Japheth  probably  got  mad  and  passed  a  prohibitory  law 
and  thought  he  had  the  trouble  fixed  forever." 

When  the  legislature  finally  adjourned  the  protesta- 

344 


THE    EVERLASTING    PROBLEM 

tions  that  had  been  wrung  out  of  it  promised  much  in 
the  way  of  honest  reorganization. 

Harlan  Thornton  remained  with  Governor  Waymouth 
for  a  time.  His  Excellency  found  him  indispensable. 

The  commissions  were  at  work. 

Office-holders  whined,  taxpayers  squirmed.  Honesty 
was  greeted  everywhere  by  wry  faces. 

But  the  "Thornton  law,"  its  deputies  superseding 
county  and  city  authority,  was  the  bitterest  political  pill 
of  all.  The  results  discouraged  the  righteous — Governor 
Waymouth  predicted  them  accurately  with  the  old-age 
cynicism  of  one  who  understood  human  nature.  The 
flagrantly  open  places  were  closed.  But  innumerable 
dives  thereby  secured  the  business  which  had  gone  to 
the  open  places  in  the  days  of  toleration.  An  army 
could  not  have  closed  the  dives — the  proprietors  of  which, 
in  most  cases,  carried  their  villanous  concoctions  on 
their  persons.  Express  companies  were  organized  for 
the  sole  purpose  of  dealing  in  liquors  by  the  parcel  sys 
tem,  and  the  State's  liquor  agencies,  established  under 
the  protection  of  the  prohibitory  law  itself,  were  besieged 
by  patrons  who  stood  in  queues  of  humanity  like  buyers 
at  a  theatre  ticket-window. 

Reformation  of  human  nature  by  mere  statute  was  a 
failure ! 

But  mere  political  disaster  did  not  daunt  the  stern  old 
man  who  held  his  commissioners  to  their  task.  The 
people  themselves  began  to  complain  of  the  cost  of  the 
new  system  of  enforcement — the  money  paid  to  make 
them  obey  their  own  laws.  When  their  complaints  were 
loudest  the  Governor  allowed  himself  the  luxury  of  a 
smile. 

Reform  for  the  mass.     Admirable! 

Reform  for  the  individual.  Atrocious  infringement  of 
personal  liberty! 

"  I  cannot  make  them  good,"  he  said  to  Harlan.    "  But 

345 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

I  can  give  them  such  a  picture  of  their  own  iniquity  that 
perhaps  they'll  realize  it  and  make  themselves  good. 
You  can't  reform  folks  in  this  world  on  much  of  any 
basis  except  that!" 

It  was  late  summer  and  they  were  in  the  garden  of  the 
brick  house  at  Burnside. 

Harlan  had  been  at  his  chief's  side  day  after  day, 
shielding  him  as  much  as  possible  from  those  who  came 
to  solicit,  to  threaten,  to  complain.  In  the  opportunity 
given  him  to  meet  every  man  of  importance  in  the  State 
he  had  won  respect,  even  regard.  His  personality  re 
moved  him  from  the  ranks  of  the  radicals  and  relieved 
him  from  the  imputation  that  attached  to  them.  His 
sincerity  was  evident.  He  was  frank  to  express  his  dis 
appointment  at  the  results  of  the  legislation  he  had 
assisted  in  procuring.  He  listened  attentively  to  the 
suggestions  of  others.  He  made  it  plain  that  he  was 
not  unalterably  wedded  to  a  law  because  he  had  been 
instrumental  in  adding  it  to  the  code.  He  made  known 
to  all  his  willingness  to  compromise  on  everything  ex 
cept  honesty,  and  day  by  day  he  made  men  understand 
better  the  basis  of  the  system  advocated  by  his  chief 
and  himself. 

They  had  burnished  the  mirror  of  politics;  they  held 
its  new  and  brighter  surface  up  to  the  people  that  they 
might  gaze  on  themselves.  And  in  time  the  people  came 
to  realize  what  service  had  been  done.  And,  as  they 
realized  it,  the  name  of  young  Thornton  went  abroad  in 
the  State  from  mouth  to  mouth — men  speaking  of  him 
as  one  who  was  entitled  to  the  praise  that  attaches  to 
honesty  unsmirched  by  bigotry. 

His  optimism  softened  the  asperities  which  men  found 
in  the  character  of  the  Governor.  He  attracted  to  the 
grim  old  man  the  loyalty  of  the  youth  of  the  State,  and 
at  the  same  time  won  that  loyalty  for  himself.  He  had 
come  forward  at  a  time  when  men  were  ready  to  accept 

346 


new  ideals,  even  if  they  were  obliged  to  wade  to  them 
through  such  mire  as  now  soiled  the  execution  of  the 
new  laws. 

That  proposed  convention  for  the  unprejudiced  con 
sideration  of  the  liquor  laws  was  taking  form.  The  in 
temperate  radicals  were  the  only  ones  declaiming  against 
"compromise  with  the  devil."  But  the  new  conditions 
were  revealing  the  real  colors  of  those  impractical  zealots, 
and  it  was  plain  that  their  noisy  minority  would  no 
longer  be  allowed  to  bluster  down  the  truer  and  more 
equable  spirit  of  "the  best  for  all  the  people."  The  men 
and  women  of  the  State  were  taking  time  to  analyze 
some  of  those  high-sounding  phrases  with  which  so-called 
temperance  had  disguised  vicious  theories  which  left 
human  nature  out  of  the  equation. 

The  politicians  of  the  old  school  remained  aloof. 

They  were  pointing  to  "  the  wreck  of  the  party." 

"And  I'll  be  passed  down  to  history  as  the  wrecker," 
said  the  Governor,  talking  to  Harlan  under  the  big  elm. 
"  But  you've  got  strong  arms,  my  boy.  I  can  see  that 
you'll  have  much  to  do  in  building  anew  out  of  the 
wreck,  you  and  those  who  are  beginning  to  appreciate 
you.  I  can  see  a  future  of  much  promise  for  you, 
Harlan." 

"  I'll  be  politely,  but  firmly,  invited  to  go  back  to  the 
woods,"  protested  the  young  man. 

"  You'll  not  be  allowed  to  do  it,"  replied  the  Governor, 
quietly.  "  You  have  been  tested  for  your  honesty. 
These  newer  times  have  eyes  to  recognize  that  quality. 
And  the  rogues  are  being  smoked  out.  But  remember 
that  even  the  end  of  time  will  not  find  all  questions 
solved.  That  thought  will  have  to  serve  you  for  con 
solation." 

That  was  hardly  the  consolation  that  would  satisfy 
impetuous  youth  and  zeal  in  accomplishment. 

But  Harlan  had  been  learning  lessons  in  consolation 
347 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

The  thought  of  Clare  Kavanagh  was  with  him  night 
and  day.  In  spite  of  all  his  searching  she  remained  hid 
den.  He  did  not  confide  his  grief  to  any  one.  It  brought 
pallor  to  his  face  and  listlessness  in  the  daily  duties  that 
bore  upon  him.  Governor  Waymouth  took  note  at  last. 
And  when  the  young  man  asked  for  permission  to  go 
home  to  the  north  country  for  a  time  he  reluctantly  sent 
him  away. 

On  the  eve  of  his  departure,  which  had  been  announced 
by  a  press  that  now  followed  his  movements  with  the 
attention  accorded  to  a  man  of  importance  in  State  af 
fairs,  he  obeyed  a  summons  from  Madeleine  Presson. 
She  put  a  letter  into  his  hands.  It  was  addressed  to 
Clare  Kavanagh. 

"  You  will  find  her,  Harlan,"  she  said,  comfortingly. 
"  Love  will  search  her  out.  And  when  you  find  her, 
give  her  this  letter.  There  are  words  from  woman  to 
woman  that  woman  understands." 

Harlan  found  his  grandfather  sitting  on  the  broad 
porch  of  "The  Barracks,"  smoking  and  looking  out 
across  the  river  valley. 

The  spirit  in  which  he  had  left  that  hatefuHegislature 
seemed  to  have  departed  from  the  Duke.  The  old  quiz 
zical  glint  was  in  his  eyes  as  he  grasped  Harlan's  hand. 
After  their  greeting  they  -sat  together  in  silence. 

"It's  a  beautiful  game,  hey,  my  boy?"  remarked  the 
Duke,  at  last.  "I  see  that  some  of  the  country  papers 
have  already  begun  to  talk  of  you  for  Governor  of  the 
State.  The  editors  haven't  seen  you,  but  from  what 
they've  heard  they  probably  think  you're  a  hundred 
years  old  and  have  grown  to  enormous  size!" 

"Don't  make  game  of  me,  grandfather,"  said  Harlan, 
coloring. 

"  Oh,  I'm  only  expressing  a  wicked  hope.  There  are 
some  men  in  this  State  that  I'd  like  to  see  punished  to 
that  extent."  He  chuckled.  "Put  me  down  for  fifty 

348 


THE    EVERLASTING    PROBLEM 

thousand  dollars,  first  subscriber  to  your  campaign 
fund." 

"I  can  appreciate  the  humor  of  that  joke,"  said  Har- 
lan.  "For  I've  had  a  liberal  education  in  the  past  year 
—I've  found  out  just  how  little  I  know."  He  added 
wearily,  "  And  I've  found  out  how  hard  it  is  to  be  what 
you  want  to  be." 

His  grandfather  tipped  his  head  back  into  his  clasped 
hands,  his  characteristic  attitude.  He  squinted  out 
across  the  hills. 

"  Bub,"  he  said,  "  I  had  the  first  real  blow  of  my  life 
the  other  day.  A  man  pointed  me  out  on  the  train  and 
told  another  man,  loud  enough  so  that  I  overheard  him, 
that  I  was  Harlan  Thornton's  grandfather — '  and  I  for 
get  his  first  name,'  he  said,  '  it  begins  with  T.' " 

They  ate  supper  together  in  the  old  mess-hall,  back 
on  their  former  footing.  Word  by  word  it  came  out  of 
the  Duke — his  admiration  for  this  boy  who  had  made  his 
own  way.  Every  blow  he  had  dealt  his  grandfather's 
personal  pride  had  brought  the  reactionary  glow  of  ap 
preciation  of  this  scion  who  could  hit  so  hard  and  so 
surely. 

He  watched  him  saddle  his  horse  after  supper.  He 
did  not  ask  where  he  was  going. 

Harlan  did  not  know.  His  longing  drew  him  down 
the  long  street  and  across  the  big  bridge,  his  horse  walk 
ing  slowly. 


ONE    PROBLEM    SOLVED 

HE  dusk  was  cool  and  soft.     Below  him 
the   current    gurgled    against   the   piers 
with  sounds  as  though  the  river's  fairies 
laughed  there  in  the  gloom.    Doves  nest 
led  against  the  rafters  of  the  bridge  above, 
stirring  with  tired  murmurings. 
When  he  came  out  under  the  stars  he  saw  the  red  eyes 
of  Dennis  Kavanagh's  house.      The  sight  of  them  put 
the  peace  of  the  sky  and  fields  out  of  his  heart.     He 
spurred  his  horse  and  galloped  up  the  hill. 

Even  as  Thelismer  Thornton  found  true  haven  on  his 
porch  in  the  summer  evening,  so  Dennis  Kavanagh  had 
his  solace  in  his  own  domain,  smoking  his  pipe.  He  sat 
there  when  Harlan  swung  close  to  the  steps. 

"Mr.  Kavanagh,"  said  the  young  man,  sternly,  "  I  am 
Harlan  Thornton.  Do  you  know  any  ill  of  me?" 

"I  know  that  you're  old  Land-Grabber  Thornton's 
grandson!  I  also  know  that  you  have  shaken  him  in 
politics  until  his  old  teeth  rattled.  And  I'm  much 
obliged  to  you!" 

"  I'm  not  here  to  talk  about  politics  or  my  grand 
father.  I'm  here  on  my  own  account.  You  know  where 
your  own  daughter  is.  I've  come  to  ask  you  honorably 
and  fairly  where  she  is.  Will  you  tell  me?" 

Mr.  Kavanagh  was  silent  a  long  time.     He  seemed  to 
be  struggling  with  some  kind  of  surprise. 
"No,  I'll  not  tell  you,"  he  declared  at  last. 
35° 


"  Then  I  want  to  tell  you  something,  sir.  I  love  your 
daughter.  I  love  her  so  honestly — so  devotedly  that  I 
propose  to  search  for  her  through  this  world.  And  when 
I  find  her — "  he  hesitated. 

"  If  you  find  her?" 

"  I  stopped  because  I  do  not  want  to  threaten  or  boast. 
But  I  will  say,  Mr.  Kavanagh,  that  when  I  find  her  I'll 
beg  of  her  to  be  my  wife,  and  if  she  consents  I  promise 
you  that  no  two  sour  old  men  are  going  to  spoil  our 
happiness!  I  want  a  fair  understanding  with  you." 

"  Queer  notions  you  have  of  a  fair  understanding,"  re 
torted  Mr.  Kavanagh.  "  You'd  call  it  a  fair  understand 
ing,  would  you,  to  come  here  and  tell  me  to  get  off  my 
own  doorstep  because  you  claimed  the  place?" 

"  I  mean  that  no  man  has  the  right  to  refuse  happiness 
to  his  own  or  to  others  simply  to  curry  his  own  personal 
spite.  That's  all,  sir." 

He  whirled  his  horse  and  galloped  away.  He  halted 
at  the  church,  threw  the  reins  over  the  animal's  head 
and  went  and  sat  on  the  steps.  He  wanted  to  think. 
He  wanted  to  calm  himself.  He  hoped  that  the  place 
would  console  him  with  its  memories,  afford  him  some 
hope,  some  suggestion. 

He  wondered  now  why  he  had  allowed  anything  to 
delay  that  search.  Yet  he  understood  vaguely  that  she 
had  hidden  herself  from  him  by  her  own  choice.  She 
had  fled  with  wounded  heart.  He  had  not  dared  to  seek 
her  too  eagerly. 

The  red  eyes  of  Kavanagh's  house  mocked  him. 

Suddenly  he  started  up.  A  figure,  flitting  and  wraith- 
like,  was  coming  toward  him  from  those  eyes.  It  was 
running.  He  could  hear  the  swift  patter  of  feet.  She 
came  straight  to  him  where  he  stood ;  he  had  not  dared 
to  run  toward  her. 

"I  heard — I  followed!"  she  gasped,  and  the  next  mo 
ment  was  sobbing  in  his  arms. 


THE    RAMRODDERS 

All  his  talk  to  her  for  a  long  time  was  incoherent  bab 
bling  of  love  and  remorse.  Then  he  held  her  close. 

"  Little  girl,"  he  said,  "  I've  learned  in  the  world  out 
side.  I've  learned  many  things.  But  this  — •  this  I've 
learned  bitterly  and  forever!  There's  love  of  fame  and 
of  power  and  of  mere  beauty  —  but  there's  only  one 
love  after  all  —  that's  the  love  that  gives  all,  is  all  — 
that's  my  love  for  you  and  the  love  I  think  you  have  for 
me.  It  is  ours  —  that  love.  Oh,  my  sweetheart,  how 
we  will  cherish  it  all  the  years  through!" 

After  a  time  he  drew  her  down  on  the  steps  and  they 
sat  in  silence  through  long  minutes,  listening  to  the 
muted  calling  of  the  crickets  in  the  grasses,  the  rustle 
of  the  river  current,  all  the  soft  noises  of  the  summer 
night. 

Then  he  bethought  himself  and  drew  Madeleine  Pres- 
son's  letter  from  his  pocket.  He  gave  it  to  her  with  a 
word  of  explanation. 

Looking  into  his  eyes,  her  own  eyes  brilliant  as  stars, 
she  slowly  tore  the  letter  to  bits  and  scattered  the  snowy 
fragments  upon  the  grass. 

"A  woman  does  know,"  she  said;  "knows  without 
reading  what  some  other  woman  writes.  I  do  not  need 
her  words,  Big  Boy.  I  know  of  my  own  heart.  I  knew 
long  ago.  I  listened  too  readily  to  others.  I  have  lis 
tened  to  my  own  love  since.  I  have  been  waiting  for 
you  to  come." 

After  another  silence  which  needed  no  words  to  in 
terpret  it,  he  rose  and  lifted  her  to  her  feet.  With  his 
arm  about  her  he  walked  to  his  horse.  He  mounted  and 
drew  her  up,  and  she  clung  to  him,  as  maid  to  knight. 

"So,  to  your  father  now,"  he  told  her. 

"But  not  to  speak  to  him  harshly,"  she  said,  a  ripple 
of  merriment  in  her  voice,  "  for  I'll  tell  you  a  secret.  He 
did  not  try  to  stop  me  when  I  ran  away —  he  even  called 
after  me,  '  He's  turned  in  at  the  church,  you  wild  ban- 

352 


ONE    PROBLEM    SOLVED 

shee!'  They  have  told  him  things  that  have  given  him 
new  respect  for  Harlan  Thornton.  But  your  grand 
father?" 

"  He  has  learned  that  my  love  is  my  own  affair,  along 
with  my  politics." 

"Let  me  do  my  part,  Harlan,"  she  said,  proudly. 
"  Love  will  light  the  waiting,  and  it  will  not  seem  wait 
ing.  When  I  take  my  place  at  your  side  he  shall  not  be 
able  to  say  that  I  am  not  the  wife  for  you." 

"  It's  enough  for  me  to-night  that  I  love  you  and  you 
love  me.  The  years  must  take  care  of  themselves.  Love 
will  mark  off  the  calendar  for  us,  little  sweetheart,  not 
in  months  or  in  years,  but  in  one  dear  summer  of  waiting 
that  will  make  work  worth  while  and  life  worth  living." 

He  patted  the  horse's  neck  and  they  went  slowly 
up  the  road  toward  the  Kavanagh  house,  their  arms 
about  each  other,  the  gracious  dusk  hiding  them.  Life's 
future  hid  its  problem.  Love's  present  was  enough. 


THE    END 


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